A private IT-BPO unit operating in Nashik, Maharashtra, has been temporarily shut amid a widening controversy involving complaints from women employees. The company has instructed staff to work from home until further notice.
According to the complaints, nine women employees alleged that they faced sexual harassment over the past four years, including inappropriate touching, obscene remarks and other forms of sexual misconduct. The complaints also alleged that women were pressured into religious practices, including being forced to offer namaz, being urged to eat beef, and hearing derogatory remarks about Hindu deities; those who resisted were allegedly targeted.
Police said a discreet inquiry indicated that, over recent years, a larger number of employees from the Muslim community had been recruited and that a group acted in coordination to harass women. In connection with the case, police arrested seven men and one woman, and are searching for a human resources official who is reportedly absconding.
The company said it has formed an internal inquiry committee under the CEO to look into allegations of sexual misconduct and forced conversion. Separately, a petition has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking directions to set up special courts nationwide to fast-track cases related to forced religious conversion, and the National Commission for Women has appointed a fact-finding team to conduct an on-site inquiry at the Nashik unit.
