New Delhi: The National Commission for Women (NCW) on Monday released a detailed report into the alleged sexual harassment case at TCS Nashik, pointing out serious violations of the POSH Act and describing the workplace as “severely toxic”.The report said that young and vulnerable staff, particularly Gen Z women, frequently suffered sexual and religious harassment at the hands of the defendants, while the organization allegedly failed to provide effective redress and safety mechanisms.“The workplace environment is deeply disturbing and toxic, characterized by widespread sexual harassment and abuse of power in the workplace. The defendants have effectively taken control of TCS, Nashik. They used to target young and vulnerable girls and molest them sexually, emotionally and mentally. The complainant was indeed sexually harassed and the defendant attempted to commit an indecent act,” the report states.The main defendant was taken into police custody last week. She is being tried at the Nashik Road Court.The report further revealed that the defendants targeted the victims’ religion and “insults against myths, beliefs, traditions and customs, and led the girls to believe that Islam was a far superior religion to Hinduism.”“The accused used to bully the female employees by denigrating Hindu myths, beliefs, traditions and customs and inculcate in the girls that Islam is a far superior religion to Hinduism. The accused indulged in belittling and belittling the Hindu faith and created an atmosphere of intimidation by repeatedly making anti-religious comments against the female employees,” the report said.“Many victims noted that younger employees (Gen Z) are particularly susceptible to such anti-religious rhetoric. Security failure It was noted that CCTVs were installed but they were not functional,” it added.The report found that the POSH mechanism at the Nashik unit was largely ineffective and ineffective, with serious lapses in compliance and enforcement, making it more difficult for victims to lodge complaints.It is alleged that no POSH member ever visited or inspected the Nashik office to assess compliance. The workplace lacks basic mandatory requirements under the Act, including display boards, posters or notices informing employees of POSH provisions, details of IC members or penalties for non-compliance under Section 19.“The Committee is appalled at the insensitivity displayed by the TCS POSH Committee/IC Committee members. There was total non-compliance with the mandate of Section 19(C) of the POSH Act. There was no sympathy or empathy shown by the women employees of TCS Nasik. It is clear that this inaction by the organization is not only a compliance shortcoming but also a governance shortcoming,” the report said.The report has been submitted to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
