*Photo source .( see Foot Note )
DO NOT BE AFRAID , DO NOT TOLERATE AND NEVER IGNORE ….
Long Back a Drunken employee, physically assaulted a very senior , Honest and courageous officer of his Bank at a function organized in a Hotel. Such physical Assaults outside the work premises were not uncommon in industrial undertakings . Most of them went unreported . But In the aforesaid case , the bank decided to create a history .A sheer misbehavior and physical assault under the influence of liquor was dealt under the provisions of Bipartite Settlement applicable in Banks and the employee was dismissed after the conclusion of a proper Departmental Inquiry .Aggrieved with this punishment , the employee approached a Court wherefrom he got the relief of getting his dismissal quashed on the ground that the misbehavior had taken place in a Hotel and not inside the Bank premises or at the working place . The court rightly held that the provisions of the Bipartite Settlement were applicable to misbehaving employees provided it had taken place inside the Bank premises . Aggrieved with the Judgment of the court, the bank approached High Court where from a clear direction emerged . It took the bank about 3 years to prove that the Venue ( Hotel ) engaged for the Bank function was an extension of Bank premises in absence of any defined provision in the Bipartite settlement .I quote the operative PARA
“ After careful
scrutiny of records and the provisions of the Bipartite Settlements of the
Bank, this court has come to the
conclusion that the Hotel in the instant case is an extension of Premises .
Since the Bank has paid rent for the official function and only Bank Employees
and the customers have come for Business Development Function , Every statute ,
ruling ,Paras of Bipartite Settlement governing Misbehavior inside the Bank
premises applies to the Hotel premises taken on rent for a Business development
function by the Bank . Hence the action of the bank in dismissing the employee
after proper inquiry is lawful and Justified .”
The order of the
lower court was accordingly set aside and the punishment granted by the Bank
was restored. The message was clear and loud . Misbehavior in the shape of
physical assault outside the premises was also punishable .I hardly heard any
such instance of physical assault or gross misbehavior by employees outside
premises at least in Banking Industry .
I have Quoted this
Judgment to bring home a point which our sisters , Daughters and women folk
need to know in respect of Sexual Harassment at Work place. The recent incident involving Tarun Tejpal and
many more such incidents establish that
sexual Harassment of women at work place is a serious problem in the country .
Had not the work place been broadly defined by the new provisions , the victim
of the Tarun Tejpal incident needed to
fight a long legal battle to establish that the Goa Hotel or its lift was also
an extension of work place .
The Sexual harassment
Act of 2013 ( Which also incorporates 1997 Vishaka case Guidelines of supreme
court on this aspect ) goes heavily in favour of working women as working place
now means actual work place or Inside the bus taken to go to work place or for
returning from the work place and any extension of work place ( As in the Bank
case cited above ).
As per The Sexual Harassment
Act of 2013 ,Sexual harassment also includes
(a) Explicit or Implied promise of
preferential Treatment in employment on account of a sexual favour .
(b) Explicit or Implied threat of
detrimental Treatment in employment on account of a denial of sexual favour.
(c) Humiliating treatment that affect her
work.
(d) Intimidation at work.
(e) Physical contact and advances .
(f) Sexually coloured remarks .
(g) Showing pornographic material/
Literature .
(h) Any Verbal conduct of sexual nature.
SO .
(1 )KNOW WHAT
CONSTITUTES SEXUAL HAREASSMENT AT
WORK PLACE
(2) NEVER BE AFRAID
OF REPORTING ANY IMPROPER BEHAVIOUR . DO NOT FEAR, BEAR OR IGNORE .MANY A
COLOSSAL STRUCTURES HAVE CRUMBLED TO DUST UNDER A SMALL BUT TRUTHFUL COMPLAINT
FROM AN AGGRIEVED WOMAN .
(3) DEMAND COMPLAINT
REDRESSAL MACHINERY IN YOUR ORGANIZATION . IT IS MANADATORY AS
(4) KNOW THAT THE
EMPLOYER WHO FAILS TO COMPLY WITH NEW PROVISIONS FACES A PENALITY OF RS 50,000/=
ON ACCOUNT OF FIRST OFFENCE AND DOUBLE THE AMOUNT ON SECOND OFFENCE OR
THEREAFTER. .THE LICENSE TO OPERATE CAN ALSO BE WITHDRAWN FOR REPEATED
VIOLATIONS OF THE REVISED GUIDELINES .
(5 ) DISCLOSURE OF
THE NAME OF THE COMPLAINANT BY ANY PERSON OR ORGANIZATION OR COMMITTEE OR A
MEMBER SHALL ATTRACT ACTION UNDER THE NEW GUIDELINES . YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO
PRIVACY AS WELL.
DO THESE LATEST
GUIDELINES NEED ANY FURTHER AMMENDMENT ?
Yes I do believe that
some amendments need to be made to the provisions . My suggestions are as under
:-
(1 )I think the room
for conciliation needs to be scrapped in the New Provisions . This appears to
be a little detrimental to the interests of the Women . Recently we came across an incident wherein a
Member of parliament from Kerala went Scot free for his alleged Misbehavior with an Actress in a function . The actress was made to
withdraw her complaint after what was called a public apology from the MP. She
had to approach a police station as the Political Party to which the MP
belonged had not constituted any committee as per Supreme Court guidelines for
redressal of complaints with regard to Sexual Harassment at Work. I doubt
whether political parties across the country comply with the new provisions of
supreme Court Guidelines .
(2 ) I believe
guidelines with regard to the display of statutory notice boards ( as to what
constitutes Sexual harassment and the punishments thereof as also the names of
Grievance Redressal committee members and their addresses ) are still not
complied with in most of the organizations . A statute needs to be created for
punishments and fines for Non display . The display of these boards at work
places shall not only help in warding off culprits but also in informing and
educating women employees as also in enthusing confidence amongst them for
reporting acts of Sexual Harassment .
(3 ) Where the
employee is forced to go to a police station ( for lodging her complaint) on
account of Non existence of the Grievance Redressal Machinery in her
organization for acts of sexual misbehavior with her , the fine of rupees fifty
thousands should go to the aggrieved employee only .
(4 ) Government must
also create a robust Monitoring
apparatus at National / Apex level as also at state level to monitor the
disposal of complaints by women employees to their employers . This apparatus
should have powers to deal with recalcitrant organizations . The law provides
punishments like withholding promotion ,transfer and termination to be awarded
to culprits by the Grievance Redressal committee. Are these awarded ?
And Surprisingly, It
is Manu only who is vociferous on punishing Culprits who are unjust to women. I
quote Manusmriti ..
“ The gods, the
Danavas, the Gandharvas, the Rakshasas, the bird and snake deities even give
the enjoyments due from them only, if they are tormented by the fear of
punishment.”
( Chapter VII canto
23 )
“ The whole world is
kept in order by punishment, for a guiltless man is hard to find; through fear
of punishment the whole world yields the enjoyments which it owes.”
( Chapter VII canto
22 )
“ They declare that
king to be a just inflicter of punishment, who is truthful, who acts after due
consideration, who is wise, and who knows (the respective value of) virtue,
pleasure and wealth.. . A king who properly inflicts (punishment), prospers
with respect to (those) three (means of happiness); but he who is voluptuous,
partial, and deceitful will be destroyed, even through the (unjust) punishment
(which he inflicts ).”
( Chapter VII canto
26 and 27 )
“Offering presents to
a woman, romping with her, touching her ornaments and dress, sitting with her
on a bed, all (these acts) are considered adulterous acts (samgrahana).”
( Chapter VIII canto
357 )
“. Those who rape or
molest women or incite them into adultery should be given harshest punishment
that creates fear among others to even think of such a crime.”
(Chapter VIII canto
352)
“ Be it the father,
mother, teacher, friend, wife, son or priest, one who conducts a crime is
punishable by the ruler.”
(Chapter VIII canto
335)
I end this post with
lines from a poem of urdu poet Sahir Ludhianavi appearing in his Book
Talkhiyaan..
Madad chaahati hai ye
hava ki Beti
Yashodaa ki ham_jins
Radha ki Beti
Payambar ki ummat
zulekhaa ki Beti
Sanakhwaan e Taqdees
e Mashriq Kahaan hain?
Jinhe Naaz hai hind
par Woh kahan hain ?…………………………
( Sahir Ludhianavi )
I have also rendered
the above lines to simple English as under ..
“ Help ! ” cries this
daughter of EVE ,
The like of Yashoda !
A Daughter of Radha !
From Prophet’s
progeny ! A daughter of Zuleikha !
Where are you ? O you
who cry loud about the purity of east ?
Where are you ? You
who feel proud of the ways of the orient ?
( Autar Mota
04.12.2013 )
PS
( This is not my Photograph . I need to thank the person who has clicked it and uploaded it on internet. I do not know the source or his name so that i could thank him personally . I assure the uploader that the photograph shall not be used for any commercial purposes .I am using it for a very very noble cause. )
CHINAR SHADE by Autarmota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 India License.Based on a work at http:\\autarmota.blogspot.com\.
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