A draft bill for redress is in the offing, but needs more teeth
Revealingly, of the 136 cases of sexual harassment that came to the NCW in 2007-08, and the 164 in 2008-09, approximately 60 per cent related to the government sector.
Currently, a draft bill aimed at preventing and redressing sexual harassment is with the Union ministry of human resource development. NCW sources say a major lacuna in the draft is that it has no mechanism for witness protection. Of equal concern is the fact that the law ministry is keen to add a clause that action should be taken against a complainant whose case is not proved. “Such a clause would effectively kill the bill as such cases are so hard to prove,” said the NCW sources. The commission is doing its best to resist the inclusion of such a clause. The bill has been pending for five years, but the Rathore case may now push the government to finalise the draft before the next session of Parliament.