The workplace is often described as a second home, where individuals spend a significant part of their lives striving for personal and professional growth. However, for many women, the workplace has historically been anything but safe. Stories of harassment, unwelcome advances, and discriminatory treatment have long been swept under the carpet. This has forced countless women to choose between enduring injustice or abandoning their ambitions.
Before 1997, India lacked a formal framework to address sexual harassment in the workplace. Women facing harassment often had no safe or structured means to seek justice. The Vishaka case was a stepping stone towards achieving safety in the workplace.
Bhanwari Devi’s story
The Vishaka case originated from a horrifying incident involving Bhanwari Devi, a social worker from Rajasthan, who was gang-raped in 1992. The incident occurred when she tried to stop child marriage in her village as part of her duties under a government campaign. Despite her courage in reporting the crime, Bhanwari’s case was mishandled by the local police and judiciary. The men in her village were enraged by her defiance and wanted to teach her a lesson for challenging their authority.
Bhanwari’s plight ignited a broader conversation about the vulnerability of women in workplaces, particularly those in rural and marginalised settings. This case became the foundation for a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Vishaka and other women’s rights groups. The goal was to demand legal recognition and institutional safeguards against sexual harassment at work.
The Vishaka Guidelines
In its landmark 1997 judgment, the Supreme Court of India acknowledged that sexual harassment violates women’s constitutional rights, particularly their right to equality, life, and dignity under Articles 14, 15, and 21. Recognising the absence of specific laws to tackle the issue, the Court established the Vishaka Guidelines, which defined sexual harassment and outlined preventive measures to be adopted by all workplaces.
These guidelines led to the formation of Internal Committees (ICs) after the amendment in2016) in organisations, introduced mechanisms for redressal, and emphasised creating awareness about workplace harassment. The Vishaka Guidelines raised that bar when for the first time it recognised “each incident of sexual harassment” as a violation of the fundamental right to equality.
Empowering women to speak up
One of the most powerful legacies of the Vishaka judgment is how it gave women the courage to speak up. For decades, many women endured harassment silently, believing there was no way to challenge the powerful or protect their dignity. The Vishaka case changed that.
The guidelines created formal mechanisms for complaints, ensuring that women no longer had to suffer in isolation. Knowing that there was a structure to support them, many women began to report harassment and demand accountability.
A step towards equality
Over the years, the guidelines have been codified into law under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013, making it mandatory for organisations to comply with its provisions. This legislative backing has reinforced the importance of combating workplace harassment and ensuring accountability at every level.
The Vishaka case was not just about creating guidelines; it was about creating hope. It showed that systemic change is possible when society comes together to demand justice. Today, as women step into leadership roles, and carve out spaces in industries once considered off-limits, the Vishaka judgment serves as a reminder of how far we have come and how far we still need to go.
The struggles faced by women at work are real and ongoing, but the legacy of Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan is proof that change begins when silence ends.