Madras High Court's big statement, 'Unwanted behavior with women in the office is also sexual harassment'

While hearing a case, the Madras High Court said that unwanted behavior with women at the workplace also comes under the category of sexual harassment. Whatever the intention of the harasser, this is a criminal act, the court said. In fact, Justice R.N. Manjula pointed out that under the POSH Act, it is the act of sexual harassment that has been given primacy, not the intention behind the act.

The court said that unwanted behavior at the workplace is sexual harassment, whatever the intention of the harasser. Be it not well accepted, inappropriate, and creates a feeling that it is unwanted behavior affecting the other sex, i.e., women, then there is no doubt that it will come under the definition of sexual harassment. 'The court said citing a decision of the US court. The High Court added that the standard of reasonableness is a scale to be set by women and based on their feelings, not vice versa.

The Madras High Court said that it is the fundamental discipline and understanding with which employees of different sexes are expected to interact with each other, where decency is the criterion and nothing else. The court said that it is not the decency that the offender thinks within himself, but how he makes the other sex feel about his actions.