Knowledge base · Governance & controls
What is the POSH Act 2013?
Short answer
The POSH Act is India's Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013. It requires employers with ten or more employees to constitute an Internal Committee, sets time limits for complaints and inquiries, imposes duties on employers to prevent harassment, and penalises non-compliance with fines and possible licence cancellation.
Definition of POSH Act 2013 (also: POSH, Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, POSH law, Internal Committee, ICC)
The POSH Act is the common name for the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013. It came into force on 9 December 2013. It applies to public and private workplaces, organised and unorganised, and places duties on employers rather than only on individuals.
What does the POSH Act require of employers?
The core obligation is to constitute an Internal Committee (IC) under s. 4 at every office or administrative unit. According to the Government's PIB background note, this is mandatory where there are ten or more employees. The IC must have:
- a Presiding Officer who is a woman employed at a senior level;
- at least two members from among employees, preferably committed to women's causes or with social-work or legal experience;
- one external member from an NGO or association committed to women's causes, or a person familiar with sexual-harassment issues;
- at least half of its members as women, each serving up to three years.
Where an establishment has fewer than ten employees, or the complaint is against the employer, it goes to the Local Committee constituted by the District Officer under s. 6.
Section 19 lists further employer duties: providing a safe workplace, displaying penal consequences and the IC order, running awareness programmes, giving the IC facilities, securing attendance of the respondent and witnesses, treating sexual harassment as misconduct under service rules, and monitoring timely submission of IC reports.
How does the complaint process work?
| Stage | Provision | Time limit |
|---|---|---|
| Written complaint | s. 9(1) | 3 months from the incident, extendable by 3 months |
| Conciliation (optional, at complainant's request) | s. 10 | Before inquiry; no monetary settlement |
| Inquiry | s. 11(4) | Complete within 90 days |
| Report to employer | s. 13(1) | Within 10 days of completing inquiry |
| Employer acts on recommendations | s. 13(4) | Within 60 days |
| Appeal | s. 18 | Within 90 days of recommendations |
During the inquiry the committee has civil-court powers to summon people, require discovery and order production of documents. The process must follow the principles of natural justice, which is why careful documentation and evidence handling matter.
What reporting and disclosure apply?
Under s. 21 the IC prepares an annual report for the employer and the District Officer, and under s. 22 the employer includes the number of cases filed and disposed of in its annual report. For companies, the Companies (Accounts) Second Amendment Rules 2025, effective 14 July 2025, expanded the Board's report disclosure to include the number of complaints received, disposed of and pending for more than 90 days.
In Aureliano Fernandes v. State of Goa (12 May 2023), the Supreme Court directed governments to verify that committees are properly constituted and required committee details and complaint procedures to be published on websites. The court has continued to monitor compliance, and the Ministry of Women and Child Development launched the revamped SHe-Box portal on 29 August 2024 as a single window for filing and tracking complaints.
What are common compliance failures?
- No IC, an IC without an external member, or a lapsed committee whose term has expired.
- Inquiries that exceed 90 days or are not documented.
- Respondents' managers influencing the inquiry.
- Digital evidence such as chats and emails collected informally, so its integrity is later questioned.
- Board-report disclosures that do not match committee records.
How does the POSH Act relate to a vigil mechanism?
The POSH Act creates a separate, specialised route. A vigil mechanism handles concerns about fraud, corruption and unethical conduct, while sexual harassment complaints must go to the IC or Local Committee. A whistleblower report that discloses harassment should be routed to the IC, and an IC inquiry that reveals wider misconduct, such as misuse of funds, may need a separate investigation. Clear routing rules in both policies, supported by sound internal controls, avoid complaints falling between processes. Where allegations overlap with fraud or misconduct, an independent fraud and whistleblower investigation can run alongside the committee's statutory process. Decisions on how to structure an inquiry should be taken with specific legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
What is the time limit for filing a POSH complaint?
Under s. 9(1), a complaint must be made in writing within three months of the incident, or of the last incident where there is a series. The Internal Committee or Local Committee may extend this by up to a further three months for reasons recorded in writing. Employers should make the time limits and the extension route clear in their policy.
What happens if an employer does not constitute an Internal Committee?
Section 26 makes it an offence punishable with a fine of up to INR 50,000 to fail to constitute an Internal Committee, to fail to act on its recommendations under ss. 13, 14 or 22, or to contravene other provisions. A repeat conviction can attract twice the punishment and cancellation, withdrawal or non-renewal of the employer's licence or registration.
Can a POSH complaint be settled with money?
No. Section 10 allows the Internal Committee to attempt conciliation before starting an inquiry, but only at the aggrieved woman's request, and it expressly states that no monetary settlement may be the basis of conciliation. The Internal Committee records any settlement reached and provides copies to the parties.
Sources
- Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013, statute text link
- PIB, Background note on the POSH framework and SHe-Box (2026) link
- Supreme Court of India, Aureliano Fernandes v. State of Goa, C.A. 2482/2014 (2023) link
- SCC Online, Companies (Accounts) Second Amendment Rules 2025 on sexual harassment disclosures (2025) link