SHRC orders investigation into alleged harassment of CMDA woman employee

Coimbatore: The State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) has ordered a probe into the alleged harassment of a Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) employee. Taking suo motu cognisance of a news report, the SHRC has ordered the principal secretary, housing department and authority member-secretary to inquire into the matter and submit a report within four weeks and has sought to know if it has in place the Vishaka Committee as per the Supreme Court guidelines.

According to the report, CMDA initiated an inquiry after portions of exchanges between the senior planner in the department and a junior woman colleague were circulated on social media. In the exchanges, the senior official allegedly seeks sexual favours from the woman, promising monetary and career benefits. The conversation reportedly shows the senior planner continuing to persist in his advances despite the woman employee saying she is engaged.

Soon after the incident, however, the woman employee is said to have resigned from her job. Shockingly, the newspaper reports that this is not the first time a woman employee has resigned on account of advances from the senior planner. Another woman employee who faced similar sexual harassment from the same official, also reportedly resigned.

While a complaint was reportedly registered against the official by the woman, SHRC has also sought to know whether an internal complaints committee had been set up in the office as per the Vishakha Guidelines to report sexual harassment of women at workplace.