BPO employee Santhosh Min B, the poorest Lok Sabha candidate in 2009 (no assets, money in hand: Rs 511), gets the sack for contesting elections
BPO employee Santhosh Min B, the poorest Lok Sabha candidate in 2009 (no assets, money in hand: Rs 511), gets the sack for contesting elections
The poorest candidate in the last parliamentary polls has just become poorer.
World Network Services (WNS), a Mumbai-based BPO firm, sacked Santhosh Min B after his unsuccessful efforts to enter parliament.
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Jaago re: Santhosh says voter turnout in Bangalore was low because BPOs didn't allow employees to vote |
Santhosh (33) was working as a claims analyst in the insurance department.
"I insisted on a holiday on polling day so that everyone could vote," said Santhosh. "That probably cost me my job."
He's now fighting for justice. "I have started a Satyagraha in front of the office," he said.
Green and poor
Santhosh was the poorest candidate in the elections that concluded in May. When he filed his nomination on March 30 from Bangalore (South) as an independent, he was worth only Rs 511.
His declaration of assets and liabilities said he had no immoveable assets and had only Rs 511 in hand.
He was known as the green candidate because he had proposed a green manifesto promising to divert the Metro Rail route to save Lalbagh and Lakshman Rao Boulevard on Nanda Road in Jayanagar.
A member of Hasiru Usiru, a group of citizens concerned about the environment, Santhosh couldn't do anything for the cause because he lost his deposit, having polled only 1,178 votes.
BPOu00a0factorSanthosh Min B attributes the low voter turnout in Bangalore (South) to mushrooming BPOs in the city.
"In the previous elections, the constituency had seen a 55 per cent turnout but this time it fell to 44.73 per cent. This is because BPOs did not allow their employees to vote."
He said he had written to the Election Commission about the problem.
'No politics, only office politics'Trouble at work started last February when he hinted at contesting the polls. He sought permission from the management on February 26 but the management suspended him.
He then wrote to the management asking them to declare a holiday on April 23, polling day, but the response was negative. This prompted him to complain to the returning officer.
"Leave alone declaring a holiday, nobody was allowed to vote," said Santhosh.u00a0 "They had closed the front gate and forced employees to enter through the rear entrance."
When he returned to office on April 24, there was a chargesheet to initiate an internal inquiry against him. The inquiry was completed on June 18 and he was sent home on July 2.
When contacted, Mohini Kumar, the HR manager who headed the inquiry committee, said, "We are not supposed to talk about this. It is an internal matter and will be sorted out internally."
