Religious conversion, sexual harassment and 'organised gang': What we know about the TCS Nashik crisis | Explained

WLid started come out as a complaint on alleged spiritual transition has at present snowballed into a major crisis for the Nashik office of TATA Consultancy Services. As the investigation continues, a senior officer has now stated that the seven male accused in the case often behaved like an "organised gang" to target female employees.Police launched a covert operation at the BPO firm after one female employee filed a complaint at Devlali police station in March, where she accused one of her seniors of rape.After this complaint, police stated that eight more staff members came forward and lodged complaints regarding sexual harassment.As the investigation into the case continues, police have now registered a total of nine FIRs related to rape, sexual harassment, and hurting religious sentiments.TCS Nashik crisis | All we knowTip-off and undercover operationAfter receiving a tip-off in February regarding the allegations, police launched a covert operation into the case, with six women police officers going undercover.For the next 40 days, six women officers, disguised in plain clothes went undercover and reported the instances of sexual harassment back to their seniors.This feedback from the undercover cops corroborated the tip-offs received in February, triggering the police to spring into action. With a focus on six accused, a formal complaint was filed by a female employee on March 26, accusing one of the accused of rape.First FIR and arrests of accusedThe first FIR, which was filed in March, stated that the accused "sexually exploited the complainant on the pretext of marriage."In her complaint, the woman alleged that the accused, despite being married, the accused forced her into a relationship on the false promise of marriage and repeatedly raped her at locations on Trimbak Road.She added that his associates harassed her by making remarks about their relationship in the workplace.Amid the investigation, a total of nine FIRs have been filed, with eight of the reports being filed after the March complaint.A total of eight employees have been arrested in connection to the case. These eight accused have also been terminated from the BPO firm.Speaking to PTI, police officials have stated while seven men and a woman have been arrested, one female accused is on the run.The seven men, police added, have been accused of sexual harassment and rape. Officials have added that the operated as an "organised gang" in the office.Explaining the role of the two female accused, Nashik Police Commissioner Sandeep Karnik told PTI that the operations and HR head of the unit had allegedly discouraged a victim from submitting a complaint, saying "these things happen" and sided with the accused.The other female accused has been named in the case related to "religious harassment.""Nine FIRs have been registered in Nashik involving allegations of attempted religious conversion, sexual harassment, and religious harassment at the workplace. The accused-nine in total, including seven men and two women-held positions of authority such as team leaders and allegedly misused their roles to harass co-workers," Karnik told reporters.Malaysia linkAs the case made headlines across Indian newspapers, a link to Malaysia has also been reported.Based on reports, a man identified as Imran, allegedly linked to Malaysia, has surfaced in WhatsApp conversations between the accused.Investigators have suspected he may be a preacher who was introduced to employees via video calls, where he spoke about women relocating abroad for "high-paying jobs and a better lifestyle."However, no official statement has been made regarding this international link.SIT probe launchedNashik police have formed a special investigation team (SIT) to probe further into the case.“We are also probing whether the company followed the existing mechanisms to address complaints of sexual and other kinds of harassment, if they were raised internally,” Nashik city police commissioner Sandeep Karnik told HT.The nine FIRs have been filed under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The sections invoked include 69 (rape), 75 (sexual harassment), and 299 (deliberate acts to outrage religious feelings) at Devlali police station. At Mumbai Naka police station, the sections applied are: sections 78 (stalking), 79 (outraging modesty through inappropriate gestures), and 299 (outraging religious feelings).The SIT panel will also probe the complaints lodged by eight female employees, who claimed that senior colleagues mentally and sexually harassed them, and the inaction of the human rescources department.NCW takes cognizance of caseAs the case name national headlines, the National Commission for Women on Wednesday has set up a fact-finding committee to probe the alleged incidents of sexual harassment.In a statement, the Commission said the panel will visit the facility on April 18 to conduct an on-the-spot inquiry and examine the circumstances leading to the incident."The National Commission for Women (NCW) has taken suo motu cognisance of serious media reports concerning alleged incidents of sexual harassment of women at the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) BPO unit in Nashik, Maharashtra," read the statement."Taking a serious view of the matter, the Commission, in exercise of its powers under Section 8 of the National Commission for Women Act, 1990, has constituted a fact-finding committee to conduct a detailed inquiry into the incident. The committee will visit the place of incident on 18th April," it added further.What TCS saidAfter the initial reports of the case, a spokesperson from TCS condemned the incident and stated that the firm has a "zero-tolerance policy towards harassment and coercion."We have always ensured the highest standards of safety and wellbeing of our employees at the workplace. As soon as we were made aware of the matter in Nashik, we took swift action. The employees being investigated, have been suspended pending enquiry. We are cooperating with the local law enforcement authorities, and any further action will be based on the conclusion of this investigation,” the spokesperson added.Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran also spoke out on the issue and termed sexual harassment as “gravely concerning and anguishing”. Chandrasekaran also announced that a thorough investigation is underway under TCS's Chief Operating Officer Arathi Subramanian to establish the facts and identify individuals responsible for the situation.Plea filed before Supreme CourtThe case has now reached the top court, with a plea filed on Thursday. The application calls on the Supreme Court of India to take suo moto cognizance of the matter of “organised” religious harassment in the BPO firm. As per a PTI report, the plea has been filed by Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay. The advocate contended that deceitful religious conversion is not only a serious threat to sovereignty, secularism, democracy, and liberty but also a menace to fraternity, dignity, unity and national integration.The plea also calls on the Centre and state government to take strict steps to control religious conversion."All persons will have the right freely to profess, practice and propagate religion and not that all persons will have the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion. It means the right to profess, practice and propagate religion is free to everyone, but cannot be practised absolutely or freely," said the plea."The expression does not mean that every person is free to do whatever they wish in the name of religion. Rather, it means that everyone has the right freely to profess, practise and propagate, but this freedom itself is subject to reasonable restrictions," the plea added further.