The Supreme Court on Monday declined the urgent hearing on a PIL seeking the registration of FIRs based on allegations of assault and sexual misconduct levelled by women across all sectors. A bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice S K Kaul told lawyer M L Sharma, who had filed the petition, that it will come up for hearing in the regular course. 

Besides FIRs, the petition also seeks a direction to the National Commission for Women (NCW) to give security and assistance to women who have come out in the open with their allegations. 

The #MeToo movement started in India after actor Tanushree Dutta alleged that well-known Bollywood actor Nana Patekar sexually harassed her on the sets of a movie in 2008. Since then, many women have come out in public to share their experiences of harassment. 

The #MeToo movement intensified in the country with more women recounting their experiences of sexual harassment in the entertainment and media industry.

Prominent people including former Union Minister MJ Akbar, actors Alok Nath, Rajat Kapoor, writer-lyricist Varun Grover, directors Vikas Bahl and Sajid Khan, music director Anu Malik  and the comedy collective AIB have come under the scanner of the #MeToo allegations.