Pune CA Death: ‘I promise that…’, Rahul Gandhi said on video call to Ana’s parents

Pune EY Employee Death: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Saturday (September 21, 2024) assured the parents of Ana Sebastian Perayil, who lost her life due to alleged excessive work pressure at Pune-based Ernst & Young (EY) company, that he would fight to improve the working conditions for millions of professionals in India.

Rahul Gandhi spoke to the parents of the deceased

All India Professionals Congress (AIPC) president Praveen Chakravarty, who reached the victim’s house in Kochi, made Congress MP Rahul Gandhi talk to Ana Sebastian’s parents through a video call. Rahul Gandhi said in a post on Instagram, “I spoke to the grieving parents of Ana Sebastian, a bright and ambitious young professional. Ana’s life ended tragically due to toxic and inexcusable working conditions.”

The Congress MP said that in the face of unimaginable grief, Ana’s mother showed remarkable courage and selflessness and transformed her personal loss into a powerful plea for a safe and fair workplace for all. He said, “I have pledged my personal commitment to Ana’s family as well as the full support of the Congress party to ensure that this tragedy becomes a catalyst for change.”

I spoke with the heartbroken parents of Anna Sebastian, a bright and ambitious young professional whose life was tragically cut short by toxic and unforgiving work conditions.

In the face of unimaginable grief, Anna’s mother has shown remarkable courage and selflessness, turning… pic.twitter.com/XY9PXbYAIK

—Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) September 21, 2024

‘Our children are still working like slaves’

He also shared a video of his call with Ana Sebastian’s parents. In the video, Ana’s mother is seen telling Rahul Gandhi that her daughter used to be very tired after returning from work and did not have time for her personal life.

The mother of the deceased said, “Only in India children are tortured like this. If this happened outside India, would they ask their employees to work like this. They say we have gained independence in 1947, but our children are still working like slaves. Why is this happening in our country?”

Rahul Gandhi will raise the issue in Parliament

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi assured the parents to raise the issue in Parliament. He assured that he will fight for the issue as the Leader of Opposition. He directed the AIPC President to launch an awareness campaign in memory of Ana for all working professionals in India.

The statement said, “Following the instructions of Rahul Gandhi, AIPC will soon announce a helpline number to collect information from corporate professionals about issues related to work stress and toxic work culture. After this, AIPC would like to present draft guidelines to provide better working conditions for professionals in the corporate sector.

Earlier in a post on Friday (September 20, 2024), senior Congress leader and former AIPC president Shashi Tharoor said that he had a deeply emotional conversation with Sibi Joseph, the father of Ana Sebastian, who died of a heart attack due to the extremely stressful working conditions and work pressure of 14 hours a day for four months at Ernst & Young. He said that he will first raise this matter during the next session of Parliament.

The company expressed regret by issuing a statement

Anna Perayil (26) was a chartered accountant (CA) who reportedly died due to work pressure at the company. Ernst & Young issued a statement on Wednesday saying, “We are deeply saddened by the tragic and untimely demise of Anna Sebastian in July 2024.” It said it would continue to improve its offices across the country and provide a healthy workplace.

Days after the tragic demise of Ana Sebastian Perayil, who worked with SR Batliboi, a member firm of EY Global, the Ministry of Labour and Employment is investigating alleged unsafe and exploitative work environment.

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