An appeal against Tata Consultancy Services’s (TCS) ICC (Internal Compaints Committee) report in a sexual harassment case has been resumed in the Kanchipuram Labour Court in Tamil Nadu.
A techie had alleged that she was sexually harassed by her boss in March 2018 in the UK, just before her nine-month assignment ended, and as she prepared to return to India.
The woman claimed that the ICC did not give her the boss’s deposition, while her statements on his contradictions were not taken seriously. She also wasn’t allowed the support of a social worker to confront the accused.
The victim said “The ICC team, including the chairperson and their report, is biased and prejudiced in favour of the perpetrator.
The All India Forum For IT Employees (AIFITE) took up the issue of the sexual harassment case against the IT major’s unfair ICC report. The case has been pending in the Kancheepuram Labour Court for more than two years.
The AIFITE also requested the government for a mechanism to monitor the functioning of ICC in all software companies and the implementation of the Vishaka Commission’s recommendations.
“AIFITE is standing with the affected employee to get justice from the beginning. But FITE feels that delayed justice is equal to denied justice. The govt(s) should support the affected women employees who are fighting a long way to get justice,” said a statement by the organisation.
DELAY BY ALLEGED HARASSER
However, as courts returned to normalcy after being closed due to the spread of Covid-19, the hearing is being delayed by the second respondent, who is also the alleged harasser.
During the hearing on March 7, the second respondent and his counsel were absent. As a result, the case was postponed to March 23. On that day, his lawyer appeared and asked for more time.
The case was then postponed to April 5. Once again, the alleged harasser’s counsel borrowed more time.
It is the second respondent, a.k.a, the alleged harasser, who is causing delays by filing one interim application after another. He had deliberately omitted 9 pages in the first interim application and the court had made another interim application for the submission of those 9 pages.
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