Vishaka & Others vs. State of Rajasthan AIR 1997 SC 3011, (1997) 6 SCC 241), Supreme Court of India

This case was a result of the most controversial and brutal gang rape wherein a Rajasthan State Government employee “Bhavari” who tried to prevent child marriage as part of her duties as a worker of the Women Development Program. After an extremely humiliating legal battle in the Rajasthan Court, the rape survivor did not get justice and the accused rapist were let scot free as the victim belonged to a lower caste community and it held believed that no upper caste man would ever like to touch a lower caste woman. This enraged a women’s rights group and under the banner of ‘Vishaka’ filed a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court of India, in 1997. The Supreme Court passed a landmark judgment in the Vishaka case laying down guidelines to be followed by establishments in dealing with complaints about Sexual Harassment. The court stated that these guidelines were to be implemented until legislation is passed to deal with the issue.