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What is the Work of the Internal Complaint Committee? Complete Role & Responsibilities Guide

Introduction

An HR Manager of a mid-size IT company receives her first formal POSH complaint. Twirling the complaint in her hand, she thinks, what now? The company does have a POSH Committee and an Internal Committee (IC), but only on paper. But not one member of the committee has ever conducted an inquiry. The clock has already started ticking.

Here is the point most employers overlook. Firstly, the right place of the complaint is not the HR’s table, but the Internal Committee. An Internal Committee is not an HR body. It functions like a small civil court within your organization. The law that created it, the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, gives it the real power.

This guide sets out what the Internal Complaint Committee does – its composition and member qualifications, the inquiry procedure, the recommendations, the deadlines, and the penalties for disregarding them.

Constitution of Internal Committee

The Presiding Officer - A Senior Woman Employee

The Presiding Officer is a woman employed at a senior level who leads the Internal Committee, as required by Section 4 of the POSH Act, 2013. Under the Act, the committee must have:

  • A Presiding Officer, a senior woman employee.
  • At least two members from the staff, chosen for commitment to women’s causes, social work, or legal knowledge.
  • One external member from an NGO or a body familiar with issues of sexual harassment at workplace.
  • At least one-half of the total members must be women.

 

Thus accordingly, four members are the practical minimum, nominated for a term of up to three years (Section 4). If no senior woman employee is available in that particular unit, the Act allows nomination from another unit of the same employer.

Composition is only one half of the story. IC member training is the other half. The Act does not impose any exam or certification to qualify as an IC member. However, Section 19 read with the POSH Rules require the employer to organise orientation and capacity/skill building for members, so as to better equip them in conducting an infallible inquiry procedure. A member who falters in running a fair inquiry is more a liability than an asset.

The External Member ensures the Inquiry is unbiased

The external member comes from either an NGO committed to women’s causes, or is someone familiar with sexual harassment issues, as mandated by Section 4(2)(c) of the Act. In the absence of an external member, the panel becomes a puppet in the hands of the employer.

The Delhi High Court highlighted this aspect in Ruchika Singh Chhabra v. M/s Air France India, 2018 SCC OnLine Del 9340 (LPA 237/2018) finding the committee improperly constituted on account of the external member not qualifying the Section 4 criteria, the Court held that the Vishaka safeguards cannot be reduced to a ritualistic formality, and set aside the findings for a fresh inquiry.

The 90-Day Clock Starts ticking the Moment a Complaint arrives

Receiving the Complaint: Acknowledgment, Confidentiality, and Witness Safety

The first question employees ask is how to file a sexual harassment complaint with the Internal Committee. The answer – in writing, addressed to the IC, within three months of the incident, extendable by another three months on the satisfaction of the IC with reasons for the same recorded (Section 9). The IC’s first job is to receive it, acknowledge it, while upholding complete confidentiality.

Confidentiality is a legal duty, not a courtesy. Under Section 16, the names, addresses, and inquiry details cannot be published, and breaching this mandate is punishable. Witness protection is also equally important – No retaliatory transfers, no pay cuts, no quiet punishment of anyone who speaks up.

Also read : Workplace Sexual Harassment Law in India: Evolution and Codification

First week – Task before the IC:

  1. Acknowledge the complaint in writing and log it in the complaint register.
  2. Send a copy to the respondent within the statutory period.
  3. Record the steps taken to preserve confidentiality.
  4. Confirm no adverse action against the complainant or witnesses.

Conciliation and process of fair Inquiry

Before a formal inquiry, the IC must offer conciliation, provided only if the complainant asks for it. No monetary settlement can be the basis for conciliation and settlement. (Section 10). If conciliation fails, the inquiry begins. Process to be followed:

  1. Share a copy of the complaint with the respondent within a period of 7 days.
  2. Collect the respondent’s written reply within 10 days.
  3. Hear both sides and examine witnesses and documents. Follow principles of natural justice. No party goes unheard.
  4. Inquiry to be completed within 90 days. Section 11(4))
  5. Recommend Interim measures (transfer, leave up to 3 months) to the complainant during pendency.
  6. Submit Inquiry Report within 10 days of completion of the Inquiry process.
  7. Employer must act on the IC’s recommendation within 60 days of receiving the report. (Section 13(4))

Powers of the Civil court. Calculation of compensation. Penalty of Rs. 50,000.

Power to Summon People and Papers like a Civil Court

The Internal Committee holds the same powers as a civil court for summoning any person, enforcing attendance, and requiring the production of documents (Section 11(3)). In other words, “quasi-judicial” means a body that is not a court but can act like one for its inquiry.

Where harassment is proved, the IC can recommend compensation. Section 15 lists the factors that are to be considered while arriving at the compensation amount. – mental trauma and emotional distress, loss of career opportunity; medical expenses, the respondent’s income and financial status; and whether payment is lump sum or in instalments.

Miss Your Duties, Fine First. Rest to follow

An employer who fails to constitute an IC or follow its duties faces a fine of up to ₹50,000 under Section 26 of the POSH Act, 2013. Repeat offences invite twice the punishment, and can lead to cancellation or non-renewal of the business licence or registration.

On the culmination of the Inquiry process, the IC is required to file an annual report with the employer and the District Officer (Section 21). Further, the IC is also tasked with undertaking preventive measures such as conducting awareness workshops and gender-sensitisation workshops.

The Three Important Steps for an Employer/IC

An Internal Complaint Committee that only exists on paper is a legal risk wearing a compliance badge. This is the message running from Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan, (1997) 6 SCC 241, through to Ruchika Singh Chhabra: the mechanism must be real, not merely an HR ritual. Three steps one can on priority basis

  1. Audit your IC composition against Section 4, including the external member’s qualifications.
  2. Run one mock inquiry this current quarter so members know the 90 day process before it is tested.
  3. Lock the annual report deadline into someone’s calendar, with a name attached.

 

Comply with these guidelines and the committee becomes what the Act intended: a working safeguard as opposed to a mere paper mandate.