A Nashik court on Friday remanded Tata Consultancy Services employee Nida Ejaz Khan to police custody till May 11 in connection with the alleged sexual harassment and religious coercion case registered at the company’s Nashik unit, after rejecting her anticipatory bail plea earlier this month in TCS employee harassment proceedings.
Khan was arrested from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on May 7 after the Sessions Court declined to grant her pre-arrest bail on May 2. While rejecting the anticipatory bail application, the Sessions Court had observed that the allegations disclosed a prima facie case involving an organised and systematic attempt to allegedly influence and psychologically pressure a Dalit colleague towards religious conversion.
Following her arrest, Khan was produced before the Additional Court at Nashik Road today, where the prosecution sought custodial interrogation for further investigation into the allegations. Accepting the prosecution’s submissions, the Court remanded her to police custody till May 11.
The criminal proceedings arise out of multiple FIRs registered at Deolali and Mumbai Naka police stations concerning allegations of sexual harassment, workplace intimidation, outraging religious sentiments, mental harassment, public humiliation and attempted religious conversion involving employees at the Nashik office of TCS.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the Nashik Police is presently investigating multiple criminal cases registered against eight accused, including six men and two women, among them a senior operations manager. The allegations included sexually coloured remarks directed at women employees, coercive workplace conduct, adverse performance reporting, threats and acts allegedly intended to create religious pressure within the workplace environment.
Khan was the last accused to be arrested in the matter. The allegations attributed to her include making derogatory remarks concerning Hindu deities and participating in acts allegedly linked to religious harassment and coercion.
The anticipatory bail application filed on behalf of Khan through Advocates Rahul Kasliwal and Baba Sayyad had sought protection from arrest on grounds of delay in registration of the FIR and her medical condition, including pregnancy. However, the Sessions Court held that custodial interrogation was necessary considering the seriousness, complexity and multi-layered nature of the allegations.
Meanwhile, Tata Consultancy Services has stated that it follows a zero-tolerance policy towards workplace harassment and coercion and confirmed that employees allegedly involved in the case have been suspended pending investigation.
The post TCS coercion case: Nashik court remands Nida Khan to police custody till May 11 appeared first on India Legal.