POSH Compliance & Internal Committee

Every employer with 10 or more employees at any workplace is mandatorily required to constitute an Internal Committee (IC) under Section 4(1) of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013. The IC must have a Presiding Officer who is a senior woman employee, at least two members from among employees committed to the cause of women, and one external member from an NGO or association working in the field — as specified in Section 4(2). Failure to constitute the IC exposes the employer to a penalty of ₹50,000 for first-time violation under Section 26, and ₹1 lakh plus cancellation of business licence for repeat offences. Organisations with fewer than 10 employees must instead approach the Local Complaints Committee constituted under Section 7.

The IC is required to submit an Annual Report to the employer and the District Officer at the end of each calendar year under Section 21 of the POSH Act 2013. The Annual Report must include the number of complaints received, disposed of, pending, and the number of workshops and awareness programmes conducted during the year as specified in Rule 14 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Rules 2013. Employers are further obligated under Section 19 to display the consequences of sexual harassment and the contact details of members of the IC at conspicuous places. Listed companies must also disclose POSH compliance — including number of complaints filed, disposed of, and pending — in the Annual Report under SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations 2015, Regulation 34 read with Schedule V.

No — an external member is mandatory. Section 4(2)(c) of the POSH Act 2013 explicitly requires that the IC include at least one member from an NGO or association committed to the cause of women or a person familiar with issues relating to sexual harassment. This external member cannot be an employee or director of the company. Rule 7 of the POSH Rules 2013 further specifies that the employer shall nominate the external member and pay them compensation for attending proceedings at a rate prescribed by the appropriate government. The absence of a validly constituted IC — including the external member — means the committee lacks jurisdiction to inquire into complaints, and any proceedings conducted by an improperly constituted IC can be challenged in the High Court.

Under Section 11(4) of the POSH Act 2013, the IC must complete its inquiry within 60 days of receipt of the written complaint. The IC submits its report to the employer and the District Officer within 10 days of completion of the inquiry under Section 13(1). The employer must act on the IC's recommendations within 60 days of receipt of the report under Section 13(4). The total maximum timeline from complaint to action is therefore 130 days. The aggrieved woman may also request conciliation under Section 10 before a formal inquiry is initiated, but the IC cannot award monetary compensation through conciliation. Appeals against IC findings lie before a court or tribunal under Section 18 within 90 days of the recommendations.

Yes. The Ministry of Women and Child Development has clarified through its FAQ guidance that the POSH Act 2013 applies to employees working from home, as 'workplace' under Section 2(o) is defined broadly to include any place visited by the employee arising out of or during the course of employment, including homes where an employee works remotely. Sexual harassment through digital means — emails, messaging platforms, video calls — during the course of employment falls within the scope of Section 3 of the Act. Employers must therefore update their POSH policies to explicitly cover remote and hybrid working scenarios and ensure the IC has clear protocols for investigating complaints arising from virtual workplaces. SEBI-regulated entities are additionally reminded of this in SEBI Circular SEBI/HO/ISD/ISD/CIR/P/2020/168 which requires compliance by intermediaries.