SC rejects plea to bring parties under POSH Act

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain a plea seeking to extend the law on prevention of sexual harassment at workplaces to political parties, holding that parties cannot be treated as "workplaces" and their members are not "employees".

- Utkarsh Anand

A bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai, and also comprising justices K Vinod Chandran and NV Anjaria, said adopting such an expansive view would open a "pandora's box".

"How do you declare a political party a workplace? Is there any employment there? When you join a political party, you do not get a job. There is no payment for your work," the bench remarked.