POSH Act Applicable To Girl Students Of A School: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court on Monday observed that the provisions of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (2013 Act) is applicable to girl students of a school.A Bench comprising Justice HarishTandon and Justice Rabindranath Samanta placed reliance on the definition of 'aggrieved woman' as provided under Section 2 (a) of the 2013 Act and accordingly ruled, "As per Section 2 (a) an aggrieved woman means in relation to a workplace, a woman, of any age whether employed or not, who alleges to have been subjected to any act of sexual harassment by the respondent. That being so, the provisions of the Act squarely apply to the students of the school." Background In the instant case, the Court was adjudicating upon an appeal against an order dated October 5, 2021, issued by the Central Administrative Tribunal, Kolkata Bench wherein the Tribunal had permitted the respondent authorities to proceed with the summary trial pertaining to the allegations of sexual harassment against the petitioner. The petitioner, a teacher by profession, had been appointed by the Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti on November 17, 1997, as a Trained Graduate Teacher (TGT), Nepali. On February 15, 2020, the principal of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Ravangla, South Sikkim had filed a written complaint with the Officer-in-Charge of Ravangla Police Station stating that he had received several complaints from students of the school alleging that the petitioner had committed sexual harassment. In the complaint lodged with the police station, it had been further averred that around 67 students had complained of sexual harassment against the petitioner. On the basis of the complaint, the Ravangla Police Station registered a case under Section 10 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act) against the petitioner. The petitioner was arrested by the Investigating Officer on February 15, 2020, but subsequently, he was released on bail by the concerned Court. Thereafter, the petitioner had been informed by the school authorities that he had been placed under suspension vide order dated February 15, 2020, and subsequently the order of suspension was extended up to February 10, 2021. Furthermore, by order dated June 16, 2020, the petitioner was further informed that the school authorities had constituted a committee for conducting a summary trial for inquiring into the allegations levelled against him dispensing with the regular disciplinary proceedings in terms of the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1965. Arguments It was contended by the petitioner that since the complaint levelled against him is of the nature of sexual harassment at the workplace, the respondent school authorities should have constituted an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) and that such a committee should have deemed to be the inquiring authority appointed by the disciplinary authority. It was further argued that the order of summary trial has no legal force in view of the advent of The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. On the other hand, the respondent school authorities contended that the POSH Act will not apply to school students. They further submitted that the notification dated December 20, 1992 issued by the Navadaya Vidyalaya Samiti prescribing the constitution of committee for summary trial to enquire into allegations of sexual harassment against any teacher of the school carries legal force as the notification has been upheld by the Supreme Court in the case of Avinash Nagra v. Navadaya Vidyalaya Samiti. Observations The Court rejected the contention of the school that the 2013 Act will not be applicable to the aggrieved female students of the school. Placing reliance on Section 2 (a) of the 2013 Act which prescribes the definition of an 'aggrieved woman', the Court opined that the provisions of the Act will be applicable to the students of the school. It was further noted by the Court that the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1965 will be applicable to the teachers of Jawahar Nabadaya Vidayalaya, Ravangla, South Sikkim since it is wholly financially aided by the Central Government. Furthermore, the Bench recorded that the order of suspension made on February 16, 2020 had been extended from time to time till February 10, 2021. It was observed that such an order of suspension exceeding 90 days is liable to be quashed pursuant to the Supreme Court judgment in Ajay Kumar Choudhary v. Union of India. "Such acts on the part of the concerned respondent authority reek of malafides. Under such factual matrix, the order of suspension which is illegal ab initio and its extension did not conform to the legal principles enunciated by the Hon'ble Apex Court in the decision of the Ajay Kumar Choudhary supra is liable to be quashed", the Court remarked. It was...

POSH Act Applicable To Girl Students Of A School: Calcutta High Court

Aaratrika Bhaumik

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