What is the mandatory composition of an Internal Committee under the POSH Act?

Question

I want to check if my company's Internal Committee is validly constituted before I file my complaint. What does the law require? Before I spend money on it, I want to know whether POSH Act 2013, Section 4 gives me a remedy here and what proof I would need. Any Section numbers I can quote when I write to them would be useful.

MyVakeel Legal Desk · Accepted Answer

POSH Act 2013, Section 4 and POSH Act 2013, Section 19 is what decides this question in India. Read it alongside the provisions named, because the relief available to you turns on the facts you can prove on paper.

Section 4 mandates every employer with 10 or more employees to constitute an Internal Committee, headed by a Presiding Officer who must be a woman employed at a senior level, to ensure the committee is not dominated by junior or subordinate colleagues of the respondent.

The Committee must include at least two members from among employees committed to the cause of women or with relevant experience in social work or legal knowledge, and one external member from an NGO or association working on women's issues.

At least half of the total members nominated must be women, and the tenure of Committee members cannot exceed three years from the date of nomination.

Section 19 casts obligations on employers to provide a safe working environment, display the Committee's composition and contact details prominently, and organise awareness programs and orientation for the Committee members.

A complaint before an invalidly constituted committee (for example, without the mandatory external member) can be challenged, and the inquiry findings may be set aside on this ground, so verifying composition before filing is important, though this should not be used to unduly delay justice.

What to do next: 1) Request the official notification or notice board listing the ICC members and their designations; 2) Verify the presence of a senior woman Presiding Officer and the mandatory external NGO member; 3) Raise an objection in writing if the Committee's composition does not meet statutory requirements; 4) Proceed with filing your complaint regardless, while flagging the composition issue for the record.

If you are unsure whether your facts fall inside POSH Act 2013, Section 4, that is worth checking with an advocate before you commit to a route, because switching later costs time. You can post the details on the MyVakeel forum for a practising advocate to review, or book a paid consultation with a Bar Council verified lawyer in labour law.