IndiGo employee accuses seniors of harassment, files FIR: 'Caste-based verbal abuse'

IndiGo dismissed the complaint as baseless, claiming it has a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of harassment at its workplaces.

Updated on: Jun 23, 2025, 15:05:13 IST

By HT News Desk

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An IndiGo employee accused his three senior colleagues of using casteist slurs against him during a company meeting, and lodged a police complaint against them. The budget carrier, however, refuted his allegations, saying it will cooperate with the law enforcement agencies in their probe if required.

An IndiGo plane at Nagpur airport. (PTI representational photo)

Sharan A, 35, from Bengaluru, filed the complaint. The incident took place in Gurugram.

The DLF Phase 1 police station registered an FIR based on a zero complaint filed in the Karnataka capital.

"An FIR has been registered and a probe is underway. We are verifying the facts, and action will be taken as per the law," Rajesh Kumar, Station House Officer, DLF Phase 1, told PTI.

IndiGo dismissed the complaint as baseless, claiming it has a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of harassment at its workplaces.

“IndiGo upholds a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of discrimination, harassment, or bias and remains firmly committed to being an inclusive and respectful workplace,” a spokesperson said.

"IndiGo strongly refutes these baseless claims and stands by its values of fairness, integrity and accountability and will extend its support to the law enforcement agencies as required," the firm added.

What's the complaint said?

The complainant wrote in the FIR that he belongs to the Adi Dravida community, a Scheduled caste. He said he was subjected to caste-based remarks several times at the workplace.

During a meeting on April 28, IndiGo employees Tapas Dey, Manish Sahni and Captain Rahul Patil allegedly made "derogatory remarks" against the complainant.

"Caste-based verbal abuse, discrimination and threats were made. I was insulted in front of everyone. Even before this, I faced continuous and targeted harassment and discriminatory behaviour. I was issued several warning letters without any fault or proof. Salary cuts, sick leaves curtailed without any valid reason, staff travel and ACM privileges cancelled... The accused also pressured me to resign," Sharan A said in his complaint.

Also read: IndiGo flight enroute to Leh returns to Delhi due to technical snag

He claimed he informed the CEO and the ethics committee about the alleged harassment, but no action was taken.

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HT News Desk
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