Posh Act plaint: IPS officer moves Kerala HC to quash inquiry report

Kochi: Senior IPS officer V G Vinod Kumar has filed a petition before high court seeking to quash the final inquiry report issued under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (Posh Act) on complaints made by two women sub-inspectors against him, along with all consequential proceedings.During hearing on Tuesday, the bench of Justice Harishankar V Menon granted the complainants two weeks to file their counter-affidavits in the petition at the request of their counsel. A request for in-camera proceedings was also made; however, HC stated that the matter would be considered on the next posting date.The proceedings are related to the complaints lodged by two women sub-inspectors who had served under Vinod Kumar during his tenure as Pathanamthitta SP.

The inquiry was initiated in Aug 2025 after the officers accused him of sending inappropriate messages and making late-night phone calls. Following the inquiry, the internal complaints committee (ICC) submitted its final report.Challenging the report, Vinod Kumar has contended that the ICC lacked jurisdiction to entertain the complaints, as the allegations, even if accepted in their entirety, do not constitute sexual harassment within the meaning of Section 2(n) of the Posh Act.

According to the petition, apart from certain screenshots of call logs and “hello” messages, no material was produced to establish conduct falling within the statutory definition of sexual harassment.

It is further contended that there were no allegations of sexually coloured remarks, unwelcome advances, or any communication carrying a sexual connotation.The petition further states that the ICC ought to have decided the issue of maintainability at the threshold. Instead, it allegedly permitted the complainants to file multiple additional statements, thereby allowing what the petitioner describes as an embellished and improved version of the allegations to be introduced in an attempt to bring the complaints within the ambit of the Posh Act. Vinod Kumar further alleges that the entire inquiry process was vitiated by illegality, procedural impropriety, bias, mala fides, denial of natural justice, and breach of confidentiality.