ISLAMABAD: At least three senior male officials of the state run Pakistan Television have approached the Federal Ombuds person for Protection against Harassment at Workplace over alleged harassment.

The senior officials included a Head of Current Affairs, a General Manager and a Manager Administration and Personnel.

These officials were removed from their respective positions, on the recommendation of the inquiry committee constituted under the Anti Harassment Act 2010. As per their respective applications filed before the FOSPAH Secretariat, they accused the PTV management of initiating the proceeding against them on frivolous complaints.

FOSPAH is operating as an autonomous quasi-judicial statutory body under the “Protection against Harassment of Women at the Workplace Act, 2010 (Act of 2010),” with the primary mandate of safeguarding individuals against workplace harassment.

The complainants contended that they were not being tried in accordance with the Article 10-A of the constitution that ensures the right to fair trial.

One of the complainant stated in the application that “Anti Harassment Committee of PTV Headquarters Islamabad is constantly trying to legalise the illegality…the inquiry process is not being conducted impartially. Specifically, the witnesses are not being provided with a fair opportunity to record their statements by putting the leading questions, which raises concerns about the potential for justice not being served.”

As per the complaint, the committee did not follow Section 4, 4 a, and 4 c and did not share the evidence laid before the members against the complainant.

Moreover, the complainant claimed that he was not allowed to submit the written reply and cross examine the witnesses who testified against him.

In another complaint, the PTV staffer stated that the management fabricated the evidence against him to punish him. He said that the actual dispute with the senior authorities was that he was raising voice against their highhandedness and in order to teach him the lesson; the management initiated the proceeding against him on flimsy reasons.

The third complainant stated that he has become victim of office politics and a lady that was hired for the election transmission was instigated to lodge complaint against him.

The inquiry committee did not provide him proper opportunity of defence and demoted him from the position of General Manager and made him the produce.

PTV spokesman Tasawar Arafat Chaudhry when contacted responded that these officials have been dealt in accordance with the law and they were penalised in the light of the anti harassment committee.

He said that “PTV has zero tolerance against such harassment against women at workplace.

The complaints against harassment at workplace tend to increase.

As per the statistics available with the FOSPAH’s website, from 2011 to 2023, a total of 3571 cases were registered with the FOSPAH, out of which 3368 cases were disposed of, leaving 203 cases pending. Of the total complainants, 2716 were female and 855 were male, demonstrating a significant gender disparity in the reported cases, with females being disproportionately affected by workplace harassment.

Furthermore, 982 complaints originated from the government sector, with a higher number of female complainants 743 compared to male complainants 185. Conversely, the private sector accounted for a larger portion of the complaints 2643, with a similar gender disparity, as evidenced by 1973 female complainants and 670 male complainants.

Published in Dawn, October 15th, 2024