17 December 2019:  The Indian Journalists Union (IJU) demanded stern action against Sunderchand Thakur, the Mumbai Resident Editor of Navbharat Times, who was facing allegations of sexual harassment from Anita Shukla, a journalist in the newspaper.

The Union also demanded the Government of India and the Government of Maharashtra to set up special courts or tribunals under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act 2013 to hear appeals against the decisions of the Internal Complaints Committees. In a letter to Indu Jain, Chairman of Bennett and Coleman & Co, the publisher of the Navbharat Times, the President of Indian Journalists Union (IJU), Amar Devulapalli sought action against Mumbai Resident Editor of Navbharat Times Sunderchand Thakur for sexually harassing Anita Shukla in 2016 when she was working under him. He alleged that the Inter Complaints Committee (ICC) at the Navbharat Times conducted sham inquiry and exonerated him and management illegally terminated the services of Anita Shukla. The victim filed a writ petition in Bombay High Court against then decision of the ICC exonerating Sunderchand Thakur. She also filed a case against Navbharat Times for her illegal termination.

In a separated but identical letters, Amar Devulapalli urged on Maneka Gandhi, Union Minister for Women & Child Development, Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister of Minister of Maharashtra to amend the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act to provide for setting up of designated Courts/Tribunals to hear appeals against the decision of the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC). He pointed out the lacunae in the Act was acting against the victims of sexual harassment at workplace as the ICC were holding summary hearings and favoring the accused who usually were the higher ups in the organisation