India has signed and ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). However, India didn’t have a specific law to address the issue of sexual harassment of women at the place of work.
Important Features of the Act: The Act defines sexual harassment as unwelcome sexually determined behavior such as physical contact, request for sexual favors, sexually coloured remarks, screening of pornography or any other conduct of sexual nature at the work place and creates a mechanism for redressal of complaints. It also provides safeguards against false or malicious charges.
Issues with the Act: There’s no participation of Civil Society Organization in the ICC. The members are from organization only which raises concerns of biasness.
The government must include domestic workers into the list or formulate a different law for them as they are vulnerable. Apart from it, proper adherence and implementation of the act is the key for its success.