EY India Employee’s Death: Rahul Gandhi Speaks to Anna Sebastian’s Family, Promises to Fight for Their Cause

Congress lawmaker and Lok Sabha’s leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi on Saturday spoke to the parents of Anna Sebastian Perayil and offered his sympathies for her sudden and tragic demise.

Rahul spoke to them through video call when All India Professionals’ Congress (AIPC) chairman Praveen Chakravarty visited the family of Anna, who was working with Ernst and Young India when she died on July 20.

Her death sparked widespread indignation after her mother, Anita Augustine, wrote a strongly-worded letter to the firm, saying that her daughter died due to “excessive work pressure”. The Centre has ordered a probe into the death. In response to Anita Augustine’s letter, EY India chairman Rajiv Memani said that he will not rest until the company accomplishes its objective of nurturing a harmonious workplace.

Rahul Gandhi assured Anita’s family that he would personally fight for this cause in his capacity as the leader of the opposition.

He also lauded the family’s courage and selflessness to speak up at this extremely difficult moment about this issue in the larger interest of improving working conditions for the millions of professionals in India.

The Raebareli MP instructed AIPC chairman Praveen Chakravarty, who visited Anna’s home, to create an awareness movement in her memory for all working professionals in India.

Following this, AIPC will announce a helpline soon to collect information from corporate professionals about issues related to work stress and toxic work culture, it said in a press release. AIPC will also seek to come up with draft guidelines for better working conditions for professionals in the corporate sector.