CRIMINAL AND CIVIL HARASSMENT
CRIMINAL AND CIVIL HARASSMENT
Author : Shanti Gupta
MEANING OF HARASSMENT
Harassment is one sort of discrimination. Any unwanted physical or verbal behaviour which humiliates an individual is understood as harassment. A wide selection of behaviour which is offensive in nature is roofed under harassment. Harassment is targeting a private with unwanted and intentional behaviour i.e., offensive, threatening, defeating, intimidating or ridiculing. It can happen face to face, with vulgar jokes, physical touching, sexual innuendos, mockery, insults or comments on medical conditions. It can happen through your phone or online via, social media platforms, voicemail, internet, texts, photos, or letters. Whatever is that the pattern of inappropriate behaviour, harassment depends on the harasser’s intent and it’s an impact on the victim. Usually, there are two elements during a harassment charge. the primary is proof that something was said or communicated( via phone or in-person). The Second is proof the communications were likely to harass, annoy, alarm, torment or embarrass.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CRIMINAL AND CIVIL HARASSMENT
CIVIL HARASSMENT
In a nutshell, civil harassment is an intention to stop an individual from living their normal life. Civil Harassment is of 4 types which are recognised under civil law.
1. Abuse of elders and dependent Adults- Within the news, we frequently hear that the elder is being abused by their relations. Elder abuse means when an individual who is of 65 years quite that are being abused verbally, physically or are becoming neglected by the relations. Whereas abuse of depended adults means a private who is at the age between 18 to 64, they depended upon others for there daily livelihood, love, need, care and affection. If they’re unable to take care of themselves and not have any means of livelihood.
2. The violence that’s in domestic in nature- Violence is completed by a private towards a toddler, spouse, romantic partner or to other during a family. It is often done by causing mentally and physically harm, threatening them to harm someone, doing sexual assault or rape to them or to harass a private. In order that they are unable to measure their life normally like other individuals.
3. The harassment did by individuals with women within the Workplace- In today’s world women also are treated equally and aren’t but men in any field of the workplace. There are many men oriented workplace which has been replaced now and an outsized number of girls also are working therein field. Due to this many problems are rising during which the ladies well-being are becoming affected physically, mentally and socially.
CRIMINAL HARASSMENT
Criminal Harassment means an unwanted and intended behaviour of a private so as to disturb, alarm, upset or annoy the opposite. There are three sorts of internet Harassment which comes under the offence of criminal Harassment where the victim’s and their family safety are threatened by other and if the person got others then the individual are going to be charged as misdemeanours and cyberstalking or it’ll end in imprisonment, probation etc.
1. Cyberstalking- Cyberstalking means solves the utilization of a computer, Laptop, mobile, tablet to send emails through accessing the web. Cyberstalking causes a physical threat to others.
2. Cyber harassment- It’s same as Cyberstalking but it doesn’t involve any physical harm to others. The tactic to harass is analogous to cyberstalking so as to humiliate an individual with an intent
3. Cyber Bullying- Cyber Bullying means when an interactive electronic technology like mobile phones, computer are used to embarrass, harass, humiliates or threaten another person. This will be done by posting pictures of others on social media to embarrass them, sending text messages on mobile which are insulting or threatening and other offensive behaviour. Cyberbullying usually did by a minor so as to bully the opposite minors[i].
POSH LAW
Any Act which is unwelcome means harassment. Harassment can appear in some ways. If anyone does harassment with a person in an organisation. Then in the organisation, if there are ten or quite ten members then it has Posh Committee, internal Complainant Committee in which they have external Council and he’s the neutral party, a private can approach to them. If they need the complaints, then if women want she will do conciliation but if the woman doesn’t want to try to conciliation then they’re going to do the entire investigation. It’s required that she must know the timeline, if she wants to try to the complaint then she must do within three months. Then the enquiry is going to continue for 90 days. Then the report is going to be submitted in the next seven days of ICC and within 60 days the employer will take action against it. If the ladies are dissatisfied with the ICC recommendation or employer how to handle the report, then she will appear in court. If any enquiry has completed, then what are the result, if anything’s has not proved then action won’t be taken but if the items will prove then minimum to the maximum punishment are going to be awarded which is provided under POSH Act 2013 if any perpetrator finds responsible. If any malicious complaint has filed by any lady then she is going to also get punishment, minimum to maximum I.e., minimum being warning and maximum being terminated from a job.
PREVENTION of GIRLS FROM harassment IN WORKPLACE
1. Within the workplace, it should be made clear to all or any that, harassment shouldn’t be tolerated.
2. On a daily basis, education and knowledge about harassment should be provided to all or any staff.
3. The anti-harassment policy should be done along side employees, managers and union representatives.
4. The policy should be communicated to all or any the workers .
5. Managers and therefore the Supervisors of the establishment confirm that the environment is harassment-free.
6. They need to make sure that the worker must skills to affect harassment, what are the policy and procedure.
7. They ought to provide protection to the workers who are being harassed.
8. They ought to protect and take immediate action.
CONCLUSION
Civil and legal code is violated by a good sort of behaviour of Harassment. State to state it varies that what is going to constitute under the criminal Harassment. We all know that until an unless if an accused isn’t proven guilty he’s not a Criminal. But actually, this assumption doesn’t apply the accused is suffered quite a criminal. He’s kept in jail for several years and on many conditions, the accused didn’t get bail. Due to delay within the case accused aren’t bought before the magistrate. Therefore the cases get the beginning after a few years till that the accused had kept in jail and suffered the punishment for the offences which has not proven yet. If after trail he convicts guilty then it’ll be unjust to punish them as he already spends a few years in jail. Many accuses face a kind of criminal harassment.
[i] Charles Montaldo, What is the Crime of Harassment?(2019).
