Plea to Extend POSH Act to Women Political Workers Dismissed

• 17 Sep 2025

On 15th September 2025, the Supreme Court dismissed a petition seeking to bring women political workers under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act).

Key Points

• Petitioners: The plea was filed by advocate M.G. Yogamaya and argued by senior advocate Shobha Gupta and advocate Sriram Parakkat.
• Scope Expansion: The petition sought to include political parties within the definition of ‘employer’ and expand the Act’s applicability to the political sphere.
• Main Argument: Petitioners contended that excluding women in politics from POSH protections lacked any rational or intelligible differentia compared to other professions.
• Relief Sought: The court was requested to declare that political parties must follow the workplace protection procedures mandated under the POSH Act.
• Supreme Court’s View:
  • The Bench questioned whether political parties could be defined as ‘employers’ under the 2013 Act.
  • It observed that accepting such submissions would create a precedent with wide-ranging implications (“Pandora’s box”).
  • The petition was dismissed, and the court refused to broaden the statutory definitions to include political parties.