BPO HR Manager cleared of sleaze charges
By Mahesh Arora

After a month long intensive probe into sleaze charges, including sexual harassment, leveled by a group of male agents of Sparsh BPO against their HR manager, the company investigators have cleared both the factions for now. During this period, senior officials of the BPO closely studied historical CCTV footage to check if there was any inappropriate behavior.

The same team of senior Sparsh officials also monitored the behaviour and the movement of the agents as well as the HR manager who was accused of indecent behaviour. 

Four of the male agents who had approached the Gurgaon police station to file a criminal complaint against the manager, have tendered written apologies and are back to work as usual. However, the HR manager is the subject of light hearted humor and is often targeted by his colleagues and other peer groups who humorously tease him during informal meetings about the gay allegations against him. Having been given a clean chit by his seniors, the HR manager, however, does not mind it and takes the jokes in his stride. 

On October 27, about half a dozen male agents working on the City Collection shift for Barkley’s Bank at Sparsh BPO in Gurgaon had slapped sleaze charges against the HR manager and approached the area police station. While demonstrating outside the police station, these agents had demanded the arrest of the 35-year old HR manager Manoj Chutani (name changed to protect his identity) for seeking sexual favours from them. 

Though company officials had at that time claimed that Manoj was innocent and the matter was amicably solved, the senior management of the BPO had taken a very serious view and a team of senior executives from Mumbai had flown in to the Gurgaon office to conduct an in-depth probe into the allegations leveled against the HR manager. 

The team of senior executives from Mumbai office had played the CCTV footages recorded the day before the allegations and had studied minutely the interaction between the male agents and HR manager. The team also observed the movements of the agents as well as the manager after the allegations were leveled, and it also discussed the issue with each of the male agent separately.  Even though the HR manager has been given a clean chit, the male and female agents have different perceptions about him and the whole episode is often a hot topic during informal discussions.

(Techgoss had run the following article on Oct 31, 2008)

BPO HR manager accused of sleaze
By Mahesh Arora

About half a dozen male agents working on the city collection shift for Barclay’s Bank at Sparsh BPO in Gurgaon contacted police alleging that their HR manager had behaved inappropriately with them. While demonstrating outside the Police Station, these agents demanded the arrest of the 35-year old HR manager Manoj Chutani (*name changed) for seeking sexual favours from them.

But company officials claimed that Manoj is innocent, and matter has been amicably sorted out to the extent that the agents finally agreed not to press their demand to the police to lodge a criminal compliant against the manager.  The senior management of Sparsh BPO has not taken the matter lightly. A senior executive from Mumbai has flown in to Gurgaon Office in Udyog Vihar to talk to both the sides on Wednesday.  The BPO officials claimed that it was one agent Arjun Raj Sachdev whose name was referred to the HR Department for disciplinary action following his misconduct in the office, who instigated others and leveled serious charges against the innocent HR manager to distract the attention of the management from the possible action against him.  Earlier the irate agents alleged that the HR manager repeatedly asked for sexual favours from male agents and started harassing them when his ‘requests’ were turned down. As the situation dragged on, it only aggravated the situation and made it intolerable, that they decided to gather courage and approach the police station to file a complaint of sexual harassment against the manager, they added.  These agents had also alleged that the HR manger would not only harass the male agents but was also targeting the female agents as well. 

However, the BPO officials, for the time being have concluded that the HR manager was facing such serious charges by the agents for being a strict disciplinarian at the BPO.

Techgoss note:  We have the full name and details of this HR manager but feel it would not be correct to publish his name at this point in time.