10.3 Sexual Harassment / Indecent Assault

Two layers: The general offence (the Code, by principle): sexual harassment — the teasing, taunting, gesturing or misbehaviour of a sexual nature against a person's modesty or will (the public- space harassment criminalized); the indecent assault family (the non-consensual sexual touching short of intercourse); The workplace statute — the Sexual Harassment at Workplace (Prevention) Act, 2071 (2015): the dedicated code — - Definition (the Act's heads): verbal, physical or gestural conduct of sexual nature; showing or exhibiting sexual content; expressing sexual intentions toward the co-worker or service-user — unwelcome conduct the key; - The machinery: the mandatory complaint committee in workplaces above the statutory threshold (the internal inquiry, its timelines, the confidentiality duty); complaints beyond or against the committee's disposal to the authority; the Code of Conduct requirement (every workplace's sexual-harassment code, displayed and enforced); - The remedies/penalties: apology through criminal referral; the employer's duties (investigation, transfer protections, non-retaliation); - The critique: the committee's capture-risk (the employer-appointed committee judging the employer); the informal sector's exclusion (the Act reaching only the formal workplace — the majority of working women outside); the under-reporting culture.