GENDER NEUTRAL LAWS: NEED FOR REFORM IN SEXUAL HARASSMENT LEGISLATION

The phenomenon of sexual harassment at the workplace can be referred to as one of the
emerging issues in terms of violation of human rights because it constitutes an infringement on
the dignity, equality, and freedom of citizens. Under the laws of India, the Prevention of Sexual
Harassment of Women at the Workplace Act of 2013 has been formulated to address such
instances. While the law in question is a result of an important judgment of Vishaka v State of
Rajasthan and is a progressive step towards the protection of women from such abuse in the
workplace environment, it lacks in addressing the problems faced by many other individuals
regarding this issue. The aim of the current dissertation is to analyze whether it is necessary for
the laws related to sexual harassment to be gender-neutral in order to ensure equality. Over
time, along with the development of social norms and increased levels of awareness among the
population, some cases emerged which involved harassment of men as well as members of the
LGBTQ community in their workplaces. The topic of this paper is related to the necessity of
Specifically, the need for equal treatment of all people without regard for gender will be
discussed. Gender-specific regulations on sexual harassment have always been characteristic
of the vast majority of jurisdictions, where women have traditionally been victims of sexual
offenses and men – perpetrators. These legal frameworks were necessary because of the long
term prevalence of gender-based violence, however, nowadays such laws leave unprotected
some groups of victims.