It was just another workday when Riya (name changed) sat at her desk, waiting for the next set of tasks. A consultant at one of the leading companies in the sector, she was, and continues to be, passionate about her job. Moreover, it pays fairly well.
However, she did not know that the day was about to take a turn for the worse when she saw one of her colleagues walking towards her.
“We had always been fairly good office friends, and he had never stepped out of his boundaries. But that day, it was weird. He sat beside me and started telling me how to work, and for some reason held my hand which was grasping the computer mouse. I felt really strange then but did not react. It wasn’t until much later that it started making me feel uneasy,” she said.
According to her, his attempts at holding her hand became much bolder, to the point that he started doing it in front of other colleagues as well.
“That was the last straw,” she said, adding that she thought he would stop if he understood her body language. She said she had told him, “although it may not have been stern enough,” and that he took it as a joke. “I finally complained to the HR,” she said.
Her case was later taken to the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC), where it remains pending.
Success of POSH guidelines
Such incidents are not uncommon in Indian companies. They have occurred repeatedly, even before the necessary laws and guidelines were put in place. The Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH) legal framework seeks to address such abuse in workplaces.
Year-on-year trends indicate an increase in reporting and complaints being lodged. According to reports, four large-cap firms have recorded a steep rise in the number of POSH complaints filed since the financial year 2021–22. The total rose to 444 in FY 2024–25, up from 106 in FY 2020–21.
To make the process of filing complaints more accessible, the Central Government’s Ministry of Women and Child Development launched the Sexual Harassment electronic Box (SHe-Box) portal. The portal allows Local and Internal Committees to be registered, providing a single-window system for women to report sexual harassment with full confidentiality.
The platform aims to enable transparent communication and more effective monitoring across sectors. According to a Rajya Sabha reply, the SHe-Box portal has recorded 300 complaints till February 2, 2026, since its inception on August 29, 2024. However, only 105 of these have been resolved, reflecting a resolution rate of 35%.
Persistent gaps in reporting
Despite the rise in recorded complaints, experts caution that the data is inadequate to assess the culture of POSH compliance.
In FY 2024–25, POSH complaints accounted for just 5.8% of total workplace grievances at the top NSE-listed 300 firms, and 0.1% of the female workforce.
An analysis by the Centre for Economic and Data Analysis (CEDA) at Ashoka University in 2024 found that 219 of these firms reported zero POSH cases in FY 2022–23. Further, 14 of the top 100 firms had not reported a single case since the POSH Act came into force in 2013.
A 2024 survey of 200 senior HR professionals also revealed that 59% of companies had not constituted a legally compliant Internal Committee.
These reporting gaps become more pronounced due to procedural limitations, particularly the restricted time frame within which complaints must be filed.
In Vaneeta Patnaik v. Nirmal Kanti Chakrabarti (2025), the Supreme Court dismissed a harassment complaint as time-barred, despite acknowledging the seriousness of the allegations. The Court ruled that the final alleged incident had occurred eight months before the complaint was filed, exceeding both the standard three-month limitation and the maximum six-month discretionary extension under the Act.
Survivors and delayed reporting
Mekhla (name changed) faced a similar situation. No longer employed at the company where the alleged incident took place, she continues to be affected by the experience.
“The person had tried to grab my waist one time. I had, to an extent, forgotten about it. However, at an office party the following week or so, they tried getting close to me,” she said.
She added that she needed time to process what had happened and was unsure whether she would receive support, as the person was senior to her.
“I told them later about it after around five months, but they told me that the complaint would not be registered,” she said.
She did not challenge the decision and resigned from her position about a month later.
Why complaints remain sparse
Experts point to a lack of awareness and training as key reasons for underreporting.
Charu Khanna, a POSH compliance expert and Founder of Social Action Forum for Manav Adhikar (SAFMA), said inadequate training has weakened implementation.
“Many organisations go for basic compliance through form fill-up. It is passed around and no training is done. This also leads to barely anyone understanding what POSH is and what its guidelines are. Thus, the main motive of it has been lost,” she said.
Khanna also noted that concerns around ‘fake’ complaints have had a wider impact.
“While ‘fake’ complaints may be few in number, it has put a question mark on ones that are legitimate as well. This has also led to survivors doubting multiple times over if they will be believed or not,” she said.
A 2025 study published in the International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research (IJFMR) highlights further barriers. Among women who experienced workplace harassment, 33% resigned rather than reporting the incident, while another 33% were unaware of available legal or procedural options.
Additionally, 17% chose to remain silent, continuing to work within the same organisation without seeking redress.
Case in Nashik raises concerns
In April, a major scandal emerged at a corporate unit in Nashik, involving multiple allegations of sustained sexual harassment and forced religious conversion.
The investigation led to an initial FIR against Danish Shaikh, whom a colleague accused of rape after he allegedly concealed his marriage to pursue a relationship under the pretext of a marriage proposal. The case also includes charges of hurting religious sentiments following allegations of attempted religious conversion.
Subsequently, nine FIRs were registered as more women, primarily aged 18 to 25, came forward. The complaints describe a pattern of unwanted physical contact, sexually suggestive remarks, and workplace coercion.
Seven individuals, including Shaikh, have been arrested under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Police are searching for HR Manager Nida Khan, who remains at large as investigators examine her role in the company’s internal processes.
However, in an official statement following the incident, TCS stated that no POSH complaints had been filed by the employees who later filed the FIRs.
