As police investigate allegations of religious conversion and sexual abuse at TCS Nashik, the company said it has a zero-tolerance policy and is focused on supporting employees and ensuring a safe and respectful workplace at all locations.
Keeping employees’ safety in mind, TCS Nashik has asked its employees to work from home as a precautionary measure, ANI reported.
The watchdog panel, chaired by Keki Mistry, a veteran of the financial industry and an independent director on the company’s board, will oversee the internal probe of TCS Nashik. The consulting company Deloitte and the law firm Trilegal will act as independent lawyers.
As per preliminary investigation, the company has not received any complaints as claimed, TCS said in a recent statement. “
Here’s everything we know about the case so far:
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What is the case of TCS Nashik?
The Nashik Police has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the complaints filed by eight female employees of the main IT department who alleged that they were psychologically and sexually harassed by their senior colleagues while the HR department ignored their complaints.
There have also been allegations of forced religious conversion at a TCS facility.
So far, the police have detained eight TCS employees – seven men and the operational director of the department. Another female employee is escaping and the Nashik police team is in Mumbra to search for her.
The SIT is investigating a total of nine cases registered in connection with exploitation, attempted forcible conversion, hurting religious sentiments, harassment and mental harassment of women employees at the TCS unit.
The main accused, Danish Shaikh – along with other accused individuals: Asif Ansari, Shafi Shaikh, Raza Memon, Tausif Attar and Shahrukh Qureshi – are currently lodged in Nashik Road Jail.
According to a PTI report, the deputy general manager of TCS Nashik branch was allegedly in touch with the third accused Danish Shaikh even after the case was registered and had made phone calls to Shaikh before his arrest, police said.
Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran called the sexual harassment “seriously disturbing and distressing” and announced that a thorough internal investigation was underway to establish the facts and identify those responsible for the situation.
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Who is Nida Khan?
Nida Khan is one of the TCS employees booked by the Nashik police for allegedly “masterminding” the sex-abuse scandal at a TCS Nashik-linked BPO.
Nida Khan has been repeatedly identified in the media as the HR manager at the company. However, in a recent statement, TCS clarified that it has no such designation.
“Ms. Nida Khan, who is repeatedly mentioned in the press as the HR manager of TCS, is neither an HR manager nor is she responsible for recruitment. She acted as a process partner and held no leadership responsibilities,” the company said.
According to the police, Nida tried to cover up the complaint and allegedly shielded the accused. Police officials say they have recovered around 78 “suspicious” records of calls, emails and chats exchanged between the accused during the investigation. Police say evidence of potential financial transactions can also be found.
Her family has denied allegations that she is absconding and claimed that Nida Khan is pregnant and in her home.
Read also | Shocking allegations in TCS case: Employee told to ‘send wife’ and more
What did the victims claim?
The employee claimed that he was told to “send his wife” to one of the accused if he wished to have children, adding that after he ignored them, they started sending fake messages about him to headquarters and tried to pressure him in various ways.
He added that he realized they were attempting religious conversion in the office and opposed it, which angered them and led to deliberate harassment of him and others.
“Since I did not have children, my team leader, Tausif Akhtar, and a colleague, a Danish sheikh, made personal remarks and suggested that I send my wife to them. During the argument, Tausif angrily threw a fan at me and threatened to kill me. I reported it to HR,” he added.
A two-year-old photo showed the key accused with an alleged employee, who was allegedly earlier transferred from Gopal (name changed) to ‘Gulshan’, News18 quoted a police source as saying.
Bajrang Dal is organizing a protest
Bajrang Dal activists staged a protest in Maharashtra’s Nashik on Friday, demanding strict punishment for those involved in the alleged religious conversion.
The protesting Bajrang Dal activists demanded severe punishment for those involved in forced conversions and harassment in the society.
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Maharashtra CM reacts
Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis said the incident was “very serious” and warned that if the incident was found to be an act of “corporate jihad”, its origin would be identified.
“The incident that happened at Nashik TCS is a very serious matter. I would like to thank TCS for taking cognizance of the matter. The TCS boss has condemned it and they are cooperating with the police. We are trying to get to the root of the incident. We are investigating the whole matter. If it turns out to be a corporate jihad, we will find its roots,” Fadnavis told ANI.
