The Launch Event:

On 3 July 2025, the Delhi High Court hosted an event to mark the launch of a dedicated online portal for filing of complaints related to sexual harassment of women at the workplace, with the aim of strengthening protections under the The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act). The platform, developed jointly by the Delhi High Court Internal Complaints Committee, Delhi High Court Bar Association, and the Bar Council of Delhi, was unveiled during a ceremony presided over by Supreme Court judge Justice N. Kotiswar Singh, Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court D.K. Upadhyaya, and Justice Prathiba M. Singh, chairperson of the High Court’s Internal Complaints Committee. 

Keynote speech by Justice N Kotiswar Singh: Constitutional values and upholding women’s dignity in the workplace

Justice N Kotiswar Singh delivered the keynote address at the event, highlighting the safeguards needed to ensure working women’s rights and the societal and cultural barriers that continue to stigmatise complainants, affecting effective implementation of the law. He began his address by stressing that “women do not require charity; it is our solemn obligation to ensure their dignity.” Framing sexual harassment as a direct affront to the constitutional values of equality, liberty and justice, he called workplaces “places of opportunity and creativity, not of fear and anxiety,” and insisted that any conduct that undermines that atmosphere must be “forbidden and not tolerated.”

Justice Singh also highlighted the need to examine everyday behaviour to bring forth true change in mindset. Men, he said, must learn to recognise and quickly correct what makes colleagues uncomfortable: “We have to respect any discomfort expressed by women by maintaining appropriate distance and avoiding certain words and expressions already listed in the Act.” Such responsiveness, he added, demands empathy rather than condescension: “What women require is not sympathy, but genuine cooperation and an empathetic attitude.”

Justice Singh located the current debate within a wider social shift, noting that women now outnumber men among entrants to the district judiciary and constitute a growing share of lawyers, students, and interns. Yet this change, he cautioned, does not automatically undo “misogynistic, patriarchal, feudalistic ideas” that still confine women to domestic roles in many minds. Because those attitudes are ingrained through upbringing and community norms, sustained gender-sensitisation efforts are essential; the uniform benchmark, he argued, must be the Constitution itself, “irrespective of history, tradition or societal values.”

Turning to institutional obligations, the judge praised the new portal as a small but crucial step: “Every long journey has to start with the first step… this enhances confidentiality and confidence, apart from transparency.” He urged organisations beyond the judiciary to establish fully functional Internal Complaints Committees and to view complaints not as threats to reputation but as opportunities to improve safety and productivity. The prevailing “culture of silence and fear,” he observed, is reinforced when light-hearted banter and power dynamics are dismissed as benign. Robust ICCs, clear reporting channels and managerial support are therefore indispensable.

Justice Singh also highlighted the need for complainants to come forward “without hesitation” and for institutions to guarantee their trust. At the same time, he warned that the system’s credibility depends on vigilance against misuse: “Making false allegations is equally dangerous and compromises the system.” The POSH Act, he reminded the audience, already contains safeguards allowing action against malicious complaints, and committees must apply them when necessary.

He closed by linking individual conduct to constitutional duty. Sexual harassment, he said, “demeans women, acts as a barrier to creativity and slows down efficacy, causing mental and physical trauma.” Because that damage contradicts the very principles enshrined in the Constitution, confronting the problem “head-on” through legal compliance, technological tools and consistent sensitisation is essential. The practical message was clear: respectful behaviour, effective procedures and transparent accountability together form the only reliable path to workplaces where every person can work, innovate and advance free from intimidation.

Integrating technology for seamless implementation of the POSH Act:

The Delhi High Court’s new portal leverages technology to streamline the filing of sexual harassment complaints, remove uncertainties regarding which forum to approach, and bring all relevant resources together in a single location. It aims to provide a safe, secure, and confidential mechanism for filing complaints.

 Some key features of the portal include:

• One-stop interface: The portal provides a one-stop platform for complainants to file complaints from the comfort of their homes, and simultaneously consult applicable rules, guidelines and checklists.

• Automatic routing: The software identifies the relevant committee and forwards the complaint, eliminating jurisdictional confusion.

• Confidential tracking: Each user receives a unique reference number to monitor progress while preserving privacy.

• Resource hub: Built-in FAQs explain rights, timelines and options for conciliation or formal inquiry, helping first-time users navigate the law.

From an implementation standpoint, therefore, the portal aims at lowering hesitancy, by reducing the entry barriers in filing complaints and making it easier for women to come forward.

Conclusion:

The proper implementation of the POSH Act is therefore crucial in terms of safeguarding women’s right to equality and dignity. Incidents of sexual Harassment at workplace, as noted by the esteemed speakers in the launch event, often are a result of inherent institutional biases, exacerbated by a culture that perpetuates silence.

The portal’s launch, coupled with Justice N Kotiswar Singh’s call for empathy and greater accountability for proper implementation of the Act, underlines a simple proposition: technology can be helpful in increasing efficiency and accessibility, but lasting effectiveness can only be ensured through a shift of mindset.

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Written by Adv. Prerna Murarka