Internal Committee (IC) — POSH
The statutory committee constituted under Section 4 of the POSH Act 2013 to receive and inquire into complaints of sexual harassment at the workplace.
Every workplace with ten or more workers must constitute an Internal Committee under Section 4 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013. The IC is the statutory body that receives and inquires into complaints of sexual harassment. Constitution of an IC without required composition is not compliance — several 2026 High Court rulings have set aside inquiry findings on that ground alone.
IC composition is prescribed by Section 4(2): a Presiding Officer who must be a senior-level woman employee, at least two members from employees who are committed to the cause of women or have experience in social work or legal knowledge, and one external member from a non-governmental organisation or association committed to the cause of women or a person familiar with the issues relating to sexual harassment. At least one-half of the total members must be women.
The IC has powers of a civil court under Section 11 for summoning witnesses, requiring the production of documents, and administering oaths. It must complete inquiry within 90 days of receiving the complaint (Section 11(4)) and submit its report to the employer or District Officer within 10 days of completing the inquiry. The dcomply Academy POSH Practitioner Certification walks IC constitution, quorum, inquiry procedure and post-inquiry actions.