3 min readMumbaiApr 13, 2026 05:17 AM IST
Seven out of the eight employees of a Nashik-based BPO named as accused in FIRs under charges of sexual harassment and religious conversion have been suspended, the company said, adding the HR manager, who is the eighth accused, is still under scrutiny. Seven accused have been arrested, while one is on the run.
A statement released by the company on Sunday said that it “has a long-standing zero-tolerance policy towards harassment and coercion of any form”. “We have always ensured the highest standards of safety and wellbeing of our employees at the workplace,” it 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 inquiry. We are cooperating with the local law enforcement authorities, and any further action will be based on the conclusion of this investigation,” it added.
While seven employees were arrested by the police between March 26 – when the first FIR was registered — and April 10, one of them, Nida Khan, is on the run.
The arrested accused have been identified as Asif Ansari, Shafi Sheikh, Shah Rukh Qureshi, Raza Memon, Tausif Attar, Danish Sheikh and the firm’s HR manager.
It was on March 25 that a woman employee of the BPO in the Mumbai Naka area approached the Deolali Camp police station alleging that between 2022 and 2026, three of her colleagues, including a woman, hurt her religious sentiments. She further accused one of her male colleagues of maintaining a relationship with her, with promises of marriage, while he was already married.
Given the sensitivity of the allegations, Nashik Police which was at that time investigating the allegations of sexual exploitation of self-styled godman Ashok Kharat, began a wider probe and recorded statements of others at the BPO. By April 3, a total of nine complaints had been registered, filed by eight women and one man, alleging sexual harassment as well as instances of religious harassment by the accused.
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Several complainants also claimed that despite reporting the matter to the company’s human resources department, no action was taken, following which the HR manager was named as accused in the case and subsequently placed under arrest.
Of the seven arrested, six are currently in judicial custody, while the HR manager arrested on Friday is in police custody till Monday.
