SC notice to Centre, BCI on plea related to POSH complaints by women lawyers

New Delhi, Nov 21 The Supreme Court on Friday sought the Centre and the Bar Council of India's response on a plea challenging the Bombay High Court order that held the POSH Act does not apply to complaints made by advocates against other advocates before bar councils.

A bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and R Mahadevan issued the notice and tagged the matter with a similar plea.

The top court was hearing an appeal filed by the Supreme Court Women Lawyers Association against the Bombay High Court's July 7 decision.

The petition argued that the high court order has left women lawyers remediless, as the high court held that the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act), will not apply to bar councils.

It questioned the high court judgment, which said women lawyers can approach bar councils under section 35 of the Advocates Act, 1961.

The petitioner argued that Section 35 of the Act deals with the punishment of advocates for professional misconduct, which is different from sexual harassment.