Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has finally broken its silence after coming under fire over allegations of religious conversion and sexual harassment at the company’s Nashik unit.
The IT services giant said that it has a "zero-tolerance" policy towards harassment and coercion of any form, adding that it has suspended the employees being investigated.
A TCS spokesperson said, “As soon as we were made aware of the matter in Nashik, we took swift action. The employees being investigated have been suspended pending an 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.
According to the police, seven people, including the company’s woman HR manager, were produced in court on Friday and remanded to police custody till April 13. Six accused arrested earlier were sent to 14 days' judicial custody.
This came after eight female and one male employees of the company lodged complaints alleging mental and sexual harassment. They have also alleged that they were forced to offer namaz, eat beef, and that attempts were made to convert them.
They have been identified as Asif Ansari, Shafi Shaikh, Shahrukh Qureshi, Raza Memon, Tausif Attar, and Mohammed Danish Shaikh (all serving as Team Leaders/Managers), along with the company's Assistant General Manager (HR) based in Pune, Nida Khan.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has termed the incident "extremely shocking and grave," asserting that there is absolutely no tolerance for such occurrences in Maharashtra.
