GENERAL INFORMATION

VISHAKHA AND ORS. V. STATE OF

NAME OF THE CASE
RAJASTHAN

CITATION AIR 1997 SC 3011

DATE OF THE JUDGEMENT 13 AUGUST 1997

PETITIONER VISHAKHA & ORS.

RESPONDENT STATE OF RAJASTHAN

J.S. VERMA (CHIEF JUSTICE), SUJATA V.

BENCH
MANOHAR, B.N. KIRPAL

STATUETES/ CONSTITUTION INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860 & CONSTITUTION

INVOLVED OF INDIA

IMPORTANT ARTICLES ARTICLE 14, 19 & 21

CASE SUMMARY

FACTS OF THE CASE

 Bhawari devi was a social worker, living in Bhateri village in the Indian state
Rajasthan located 55 km from capital of Rajasthan i.e. Jaipur.
 In 1985, state government has started a project ‘Women Development Project’
which was about to stop child marriage and Bhawari devi was employed as a
social worker in the program. Many women were appointed in the program
and she was one of them, appointed as sathini for communication in villages.
She was herself 5 years old on the time of her marriage.
  The campaign was against child marriage. One day while at work she was
working to stop a marriage of a 9 month old girl child in Ramkaran Gujjar’s
family. Unfortunately, the family managed to marry the baby the next day.
 On 22 September 1992 Bhawari devi was working in a field with her husband.
The five men, four from the aforementioned Gujjar family (Ram Sukh Gujjar,
Gyarsa Gujjar, Ram Karan Gujjar and Badri Gujjar) and one Shravan Sharma,
planned to exact revenge and then attacked Bhawari devi’s husband and she
was brutally gang raped by all five men.
 She went to the police station, but they didn’t help. She was told to leave her
Lehenga (skirt) at the station for medical evidence. Bhawari devi, in her never
ending quest for justice, managed to file a complaint.
 The medical examination was delayed for fifty-two hours. However, the
examiner did not mention any rape commission in the report, instead
mentioning the victim’s age.
 In the verdict of 15 November 1995, the district and sessions court in Jaipur
dismissed the case and acquitted all the five accused. Five judges were
changed and it was the sixth judge who ruled that the accused were not
guilty, stating that Bhawari’s husband couldn’t have passively watched his
wife being gang- raped.
 The matter came in light when a news published in newspaper Rajasthan
Patrika went viral and then the State government decided to appeal the
judgement after being pressured by women’s groups and non-governmental
organizations. High court held only one hearing regarding the case. Two of
five accused were dead at the time of high court proceeding.
 This provoked women’s groups and NGO and a women’s rights group
known as ‘Vishakha’ along with four organizations to come together and filed
a petition against this brutal gang rape.
 This was a PIL filed by these organizations against this vicious gang rape, it
laid its focus on the enforcement of the fundamental rights of women at the
workplace under the provisions of Article 14, 15, 19 and 21 of the constitution
of India, it also raised the issue of the need for protection of women from
sexual harassment at workplace.

ISSUE RAISED

 Whether the decision of the trial court in Bhawari devi’s case was violative of
her fundamental rights- article 14, 15, 19(1), 21 of the constitution of India?
  Whether there is a role and responsibility of employer in sexual harassment
case or not?
 Whether there is a need of formal guidelines regarding sexual harassment in a
workplace or not?

ARGUMENTS FROM THE PETITIONER’S SIDE

 The writ petition was filed by the ‘Vishakha’ organization and other
organizations and argued that the act of sexual harassment of women at
workplace violate the fundamental rights enshrined under article 14,15,19(1),
and 21 of the constitution of India. They requested the court to frame
guidelines for preventing sexual harassment on the workplace. The real
meaning of gender equality must be understood.

ARGUMENT FROM THE RESPONDENT SIDE

 The solicitor general in this case did something unusual. With the consent of
respondent, state-supported the petitioners. The respondent helped the
honourable court come up with a practical strategy to stop sexual harassment
and design the rule for its avoidance.

RELATED PROVISIONS

 THE VISHAKHA GUIDELINES

 Employer’s duty- Employer or other responsible persons are bound to
preclude such indecent incidents of sexual harassment from happening. In
the case, such act happens, then the organization must consist of a mechanism
to provide prosecutorial and conciliatory remedies.
 Measures for prevention- employers or persons in charge of the workplace
must take preventive measures such as an express prohibition of sexual
harassment in the form of notifications or circulars, penalties by the
government against the offender, appropriate work conditions in respect of
hygiene, health and leisure.
 Proceedings in case of misconduct- if the offenses committed are the ones that
fall under the purview of the Indian penal code, 1860 then the employer is
bound to take prosecutorial action by complaining to the appropriate
authority.
 Appropriate disciplinary action – if there is an occurrence of the violation of
service rules, appropriate disciplinary action must be taken.
  Redressal mechanism- an organization must have a redressal mechanism to
address the complaints. This must be irrespective of the fact that whether the
act constitutes an offense under the Indian penal code, 1860, or any other law
such.
 Redressal committee- such a redressal mechanism or more precisely such a
complaint committee must have women as more than half of its members and
its head must be a woman. The committee must comprise of a counselling
facility. It is also acceptable to collaborate with NGO’s or any such
organizations which are well aware of such issues. A report must be sent to
the government annually on the development of the issues being dealt by the
committee.

JUDGEMENT

 The judgement of this case was conveyed by chief justice J.S. Verma. The
court observed that the fundamental rights under article 14(2), 19(3) (1) (g)
and 21(4) of the Constitution of India that, every profession, trade or
occupation should provide safe working environment to the employees. It
hampered the right to life and the right to live a dignified life. The basic
requirement was that there should be the availability of safe working
environment at workplace.
 The Supreme Court held that women have fundamental right towards the
freedom of sexual harassment at workplace. It also put forward various
important guidelines for the employees to follow them and avoid sexual
harassment of women at workplace.
 The Supreme Court made the term Sexual Harassment well defined. It stated
that any physical touch or conduct, showing of pornography, any unpleasant
taunt or misbehaviour, or any sexual desire towards women, sexual favour
will come under the ambit of sexual harassment.

CONCLUSION

 Mahatma Gandhi once said- “the day a woman can walk freely on the roads
at night, that day we can say that India has achieved independence”.
 Pandit Jawaharlal said- “you can tell the condition of a nation by looking at
the status of its women”.
 Sexual harassment of women at the workplace happens at a frequent rate in
India. If any strict action will not be taken towards this crime, it will directly
hamper the working ration of the women in India and on other hand it will
hamper the economic situation of India. The conditions of women must be
equal to the men. This case is considered a landmark case by providing some
special rights to women. Vishakha guidelines were announced in the
judgement which made working environment for women on the workplace.