9 FIRs, 8 arrests, Nida's family speaks out: Claims and counters in Nashik BPO sexual abuse, ‘conversion racket’ case

THe restrained industrial landscape painting of Nashik has been shaken by an alleged outrage involving a Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)-linked BPO building block, where allegations of violate, systemic sexual harassment, and organised religious coercion have led to a massive criminal investigation.The Nashik police have so far registered nine FIRs and arrested eight employees of the BPO firm. That includes seven men and one female operations manager. While the police have labeled 26-year-old Nida Khan as the "absconding mastermind" behind alleged religious conversion attempts, her family has come forward to vehemently dispute these claims. The family has alleged foul play and digital harassment that's based on mere claims.Undercover investigation for 40 days: PoliceThe scale of the alleged organised operating within the BPO was revealed after a covert operation, police said. Following a tip-off in early February regarding some acts by certain employees, six female police officers went undercover at the Nashik facility for 40 days.Disguised as regular employees, these officers monitored workstations and meetings, reporting back instances of misconduct to their seniors. This corroborated the initial reports, triggering formal police action.The first FIR was filed on March 26 by a 23-year-old employee at the Devlali police station. She accused a senior colleague, Danish Shaikh, of repeated rape under the false pretext of marriage, alleging he failed to disclose he was already married. Following this initial complaint, eight more employees, including one male, came forward to report instances of sexual, mental, and religious harassment.Controversy around Nida KhanCentral to the police's narrative is Nida Khan, whom authorities have portrayed as a high-ranking mastermind responsible for religious harassment. However, her family told the Hindustan Times that Nida Khan is currently at her home in Mumbai, expecting her first child, and is not "on the run".Her uncle stated that no police officers have yet approached their door seeking her whereabouts.The family also challenged the police's description of her professional role. While a viral image on social media labels her as the “HR Head”, the family claims her image was taken from Instagram and the designation was superimposed. Multiple sources and family members maintain she was a tele-caller in the sales team, and had no association with the human resources department.Khan, a commerce graduate currently pursuing an MBA, had moved to Mumbai in January to be with her husband. Her lawyer is currently in the process of filing an anticipatory bail application, it is learnt.“For the first couple of days when the police made the entire issue public, we thought that there could be some other woman with the same name that the police had booked, but then she herself told us that a case has been filed against her. Our entire family has suffered huge mental trauma,” said Khan’s brother.Of the nine FIRs filed, Khan has been named in one FIR lodged at the Devlali Police Station on March 26 pertaining to religious harassment.Claims of systemic harassment, coercionThe FIRs speak of an environment where senior employees allegedly misused their authority to target junior staff.Police commissioner Sandeep Karnik noted that the seven male accused operated like an “organised gang”. In one instance, a female victim who attempted to report harassment to a senior HR official was reportedly told, “These things happen,” discouraging her from pursuing a formal complaint.The allegations extend beyond sexual abuse to religious coercion. Complainants alleged that colleagues Danish and Tausif tried to convince them of the merits of Islam over Hinduism, while Khan was accused of making objectionable comments about a Hindu deity. Police are probing a potential “Malaysia link” involving a man named Imran, who appeared in WhatsApp chats discussing moving female employees abroad for high-paying jobs.Due to the potential for extremist connections or foreign funding, the National Investigating Agency (NIA), the state intelligence department (SID) and the anti-terrorism squad (ATS) have been contacted to assist the Special Investigation Team (SIT), HT has reported earlier.What company has said, and doneThe response from the company has been swift but there is now scrutiny over its internal mechanisms. TCS has terminated seven of the eight arrested employees, and stated it has a zero-tolerance policy towards such conduct.Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran described the allegations as “gravely concerning and anguishing”, an internal inquiry led by TCS COO Arathi Subramanian.However, while the company maintains it has a functional Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) against sexual abuse, police are investigating why none of the victims felt empowered to use it.What next?The matter even reached the Supreme Court, as a plea filed by advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, who is also a BJP leader, argues that the case could reveal a threat to national unity.The National Commission for Women (NCW) has formed a fact-finding committee, too, including a retired judge.