A Legal Cry Against Harassment, Deception, and Abandonment Part 1
Harassed. Abandoned. Still Fighting
In a recent Special Criminal Application filed before the High Court of Gujarat at Ahmedabad, a disturbing sequence of events has been laid bare. A senior human resources professional—also a breast cancer survivor—has alleged severe sexual, financial, and mental harassment by senior executives of a prominent pharmaceutical company, leading to irreparable trauma and systemic injustice. Despite a written police complaint filed on 28 December 2024, no FIR has been registered, compelling her to seek judicial intervention.
This case isn’t just about one woman’s fight—it's a reflection of the silence and cruelty buried beneath corporate walls, raising urgent questions about transparency, integrity, and accountability in the workplace.
Timeline of Harassment and Retaliation
Career Interruption Under Deceptive Circumstances
In 2024, while on a sanctioned academic sabbatical, the petitioner was recalled to India under pretenses. A fake temporary employment contract was generated to formalize this recall to India, disrupting her long-term career plans and immigration documentation. This move was neither consensual nor clearly explained, creating an environment of coercion masked as procedure.
Hostile Work Environment and Coercion
Between October and December 2024, she endured consistent sexual intimidation, financial pressure, and mental harassment at the workplace. With no female HR support and no safe redressal mechanisms, the environment became dangerously unsafe and unpredictable.
Breast Cancer Survivor Forced Into Hardship
While undergoing life as a breast cancer survivor, she was pressured to work remotely during an internal inquiry. Despite her fragile condition, she was arbitrarily transferred to a distant manufacturing plant on 13 January 2025, subjected to a long daily commute of 120 km, a dangerous commute in an isolated, unhygenicplace and unsafe lodging. This action displayed an appalling disregard for her medical state and basic human dignity.
Ignored Grievances, Unpaid Dues, and Institutional Denial
Even after multiple formal communications in February 2025 regarding unexplained salary deductions, withheld entitlements, and non-payment of allowances, she received no remedy. Instead, her claims were broadly denied, and the Internal Complaints Committee dismissed her complaint, citing a lack of “direct evidence.”
Deplorable Conditions and Systemic Neglect
Upon reassignment, the petitioner was housed in unsanitary and substandard accommodations, with no access to female supervisors or HR personnel. She was expected to travel over 120 km daily despite her condition. Multiple RTI applications went unanswered, and rather than assisting her, authorities pushed her case from one department to another. Who can benefit from such cruelty, misrepresentations, and systematic delays—if not those who seek to silence and erase accountability?
Beyond the Petition: Red Flags of Deception
The petition also brings to light deeper concerns:
Listing her as someone’s spouse, despite her single status, is not just unlawful but points to forged records and intentional misrepresentation.
The company, while projecting itself as a healthcare entity, failed to meet even minimum hygienic and professional standards, casting doubt on its regulatory compliance.
There is a possibility of covert or hidden operations, as the petitioner was never briefed transparently about her assignments or contractual arrangements.
Officials dismissed her health crisis by stating, “Everyone has ailments,” offering no compassion or exception.
After six years in the UK, she is now effectively stranded, silenced, and abandoned, left to survive alone in a foreign country, India, with no support.
(Reveals the inhuman disregard for professional and medical hardship.)
Legal Grounds and Precedents
The plea draws upon key judgments such as:
State of Uttar Pradesh, (2014) 2 SCC 1
State of Telangana vs. Habib Abdullah Jeelani, (2017) 2 SCC 779
Both cases reinforce that law enforcement is duty-bound to register FIRs when cognizable offences are disclosed in complaints—something the petitioner was denied.
Final Reflections: When Systems Choose Silence
This isn't just about one company or one woman—it’s a mirror to how deeply corporate deception and state apathy can intertwine. The story is of a woman who fought cancer, bureaucracy, and betrayal—yet stood up for her truth.
With the hearing expected on or after 26th June, the petitioner now awaits the Court’s verdict—one that may finally offer the justice long denied.
“Silence is no safeguard when injustice becomes the standard. The question isn't why she’s speaking up—it’s why everyone else isn’t.”