A court in Nashik, Maharashtra, has delivered a major ruling in the TCS religious conversion and sexual harassment case. The court denied bail to Ashwini Chainani, the site head at TCS and a member of the company’s POSH committee.
In its order, the court observed that Chainani ignored the victim’s complaints and, by doing so, ended up shielding the accused. The court further remarked that her conduct amounted to encouraging the offence.
The court said that despite being a member of the POSH committee, Ashwini Chainani failed to fulfil her responsibilities. Her insensitive approach further worsened the work environment.
Victim’s Complaint Was Never Properly Recorded
Ashwini Chainani was a member of the company’s Internal Committee (IC), commonly known as the POSH committee. This committee is constituted under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.
The court noted that the victim had repeatedly raised verbal complaints of harassment, but Chainani neither helped her register the complaint in writing nor took any steps to stop the alleged harassment. Under the POSH law, it was her legal duty to do so.
According to the victim, Chainani even advised her to forgive the accused.
Ashwini Chainani was arrested on April 10 under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on charges of abetment and helping the accused in the case.
The victim alleged that she had approached Chainani multiple times with verbal complaints, but her concerns were ignored every single time.
What Did the Defence Argue?
Lawyers representing the defence argued before the court that Ashwini Chainani primarily worked from TCS’s Pune branch and did not directly supervise the day-to-day functioning of the Nashik office.
The defence also argued that the victim had never submitted a written complaint, and therefore no formal POSH proceedings were initiated. They additionally pointed to the delay in filing the complaint.
However, the court rejected all these arguments.
What Did the Court Say About the Delay?
The court clearly stated that the victim could not be blamed for the delay in filing the complaint. According to the court, the victim had immediately informed Ashwini Chainani — in her capacity as a POSH committee member — about the circumstances related to the incident. The court held that it was Chainani’s responsibility to act once the complaint was brought to her notice, but she failed to do so. This is why the court ultimately rejected her bail plea.
