New Delhi, Nov. 22 -- The Supreme Court on Friday sought responses from the Centre and the Bar Council of India (BCI) on a petition filed by UNS Women Legal Association challenging a Bombay high court ruling that bars women advocates from approaching state bar councils with sexual-harassment complaints, on the ground that no "employer-employee relationship" exists between lawyers and the councils. A bench of justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan issued notice on the appeal filed by the Supreme Court Women Lawyers Association (SCWLA) against the decision of the Bombay HC on July 7. The petition included the Maharashtra government and State Bar Council of Maharashtra & Goa who were parties before the high court. The petition, argued by senior advocate Mahalakshmi Pavani, said the decision leaves women lawyers remediless as the high court held that Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act,. 2013 (POSH Act), will not apply to bar councils and hence no permanent grievance redressal committee can be set up by these statutory councils. The petition also questioned the high court judgment for observing that women lawyers can approach bar councils under section 35 of the Advocates Act, 1961. It said that Section 35 deals with punishment of advocates for professional misconduct which is different from sexual harassment. The bench observed that such a committee - Gender Sensitisation and Internal Complaints Committee - also exists in the Supreme Court to deal with sexual harassment complaints by lawyers and staff working in the top court. As justice Nagarathna heads the committee she shared about receiving all kinds of complaints relating to listing of matters in court, which has nothing to do with sexual harassment. Yet every complaint is processed to maintain the record, she said. With the SC admitting the matter for consideration, it will be required to decide whether a "relationship of employer and employee" exists between lawyers and the council....