The Delhi High Court found the Director General of the National Cadet Corps (DGNCC) on Monday under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), guilty of contempt of court for failing to comply with a previous court order related to a sexual harassment complaint filed by a female officer.
The case involved a permanent commissioned Whole Time Lady Officer (WTLO) with the NCC, who had lodged a complaint against a male officer under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013, also known as the POSH Act.
After the woman approached the High Court, claiming that the DGNCC had failed to comply with the court’s previous order on the matter, Justice Manoj Jain noted that the DGNCC had engaged in “wilful and deliberate disobedience” of the court’s February ruling.
“…the DGNCC’s decision in the petitioner’s case raises concerns about bias. This is because the DGNCC supervised the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) and justified their own decisions in the appeal letter dated 10.04.2024. Furthermore, the petitioner has been denied a fair hearing, and their representation has not been considered by the DA [disciplinary authority]. This omission is a concern, as the DA’s role is critical in ensuring a fair and impartial process under the POSH Act. Therefore the impugned
The court instructed the DGNCC to “purge themselves of contempt” by referring the petitioner’s representation to the Ministry of Defence and making a decision on it within three weeks, after giving her an opportunity to be heard.
Additionally, the court warned that if the order was not complied with, the DGNCC would be required to appear before the court to determine the appropriate sentence or punishment. A compliance report was also ordered to be submitted by February 1, 2025.
On February 12 of this year, dissatisfied with the findings and recommendations of the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC), the woman officer approached the Delhi High Court, requesting that the ICC’s supplementary recommendations be overturned.
The woman officer initially withdrew her petition on February 13, as she had an alternative remedy available under the provisions of the POSH Act. However, she filed a second petition on February 14 after the DGNCC failed to provide a substantive response to her representation.
On February 19, the Delhi High Court directed the DGNCC to treat the woman’s representation as an appeal under Section 18 of the POSH Act and to forward the appeal to the appellate authority under the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules.
In her contempt petition, the woman accused the DGNCC of failing to comply with the court’s February order. She claimed that instead of addressing the court’s specific directives, the DGNCC issued a “totally irrelevant and evasive response,” citing their communication dated April 10, 2024, which allegedly dealt with issues unrelated to the court’s directives.
The woman also highlighted that the DGNCC had acted both as the Designated Authority (DA) and the Appellate Authority (AA) in her case, even though the rules specify that the Ministry of Defence should serve as the DA and the President of India should act as the AA in handling POSH complaints. She further stated that she was not provided an opportunity to be heard.
