Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Serious allegations of workplace harassment have emerged from the encroachment wing of the Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC), with women bouncers and workers accusing male colleagues of misconduct.
On Thursday, a group of 11 female staff, all employed as daily wagers for the past eight years, submitted a formal complaint to senior BMC officials. In response, the general administration department (GAD) of the BMC formed an investigation committee under additional commissioner Tina Yadav.
The women said that they were originally recruited with the assurance that their role would involve handling situations involving women encroachers and they were always deployed together in a dedicated vehicle. However, in recent weeks, they were forcibly seated among male employees in separate vehicles, they alleged.
“Male employees smoke cigarettes and “beedis” openly, blow smoke on us and use vulgar language”, one of the complainants alleged. They also accused a male driver of inappropriate behaviour and claimed that despite repeated complaints, no action was taken.
The issue escalated further when the bouncers alleged that their current treatment was retaliation for reporting misconduct. According to them, a male employee had been stealing and selling scrap iron from encroachment operations. Instead of investigating the theft, the officials allegedly began harassing the women who raised the complaint.
Two of the 11 bouncers were posted outside Hamidia Hospital, while the remaining were reassigned duties in different constituencies. The vehicle that once ensured their safety by keeping them together was reportedly withdrawn, they said
One of the affected women said, “We raised the issue with additional commissioner Varun Awasthi. Subsequently, an inquiry panel was set up under ADC Tina Yadav to look into our complaints”.
Confirming the development, BMC’s additional commissioner and GAD in-charge Varun Awasthi told the Free Press that an investigation committee had been formed under ADC Tina Yadav’s leadership.
Awasthi further said that after the inquiry, strict action would be taken against any employee found guilty.
