Kamal Ghorui
–
NEW DELHI: A Nashik court on Friday remanded Nida Khan, key accused in the alleged sexual harassment and religious coercion case at Tata Consultancy Services’ unit in the city, to police custody till May 11, news agency PTI reported.Khan, who is also an employee of the IT major, was arrested on Thursday from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar after allegedly remaining absconding since the case surfaced. She was produced before the Nashik Road court on Friday, where police sought her custody for further investigation. The court accepted the plea and remanded her to police custody till May 11.
Earlier, on May 2, the court had rejected Khan’s anticipatory bail application, observing that there appeared to be a “systematic plan” to brainwash the complainant through “organized attempts”. The court had also remarked that “the magnitude of the offense is truly multi-dimensional and multi-layered” and said custodial interrogation was necessary to reach the “root of the case”.The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Nashik police is currently probing nine cases linked to alleged molestation and harassment at the TCS unit in Nashik.So far, eight people, including a female operations manager, have been arrested after nine FIRs were registered in connection with allegations of exploitation, attempted forced religious conversion, hurting religious sentiments, molestation and mental harassment of female employees at the office.Tata Consultancy Services said it has long maintained a zero-tolerance policy towards harassment and coercion of any kind, adding that employees allegedly involved in the sexual harassment case at its Nashik office have been suspended.
