Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s remarks on Anna’s death have not gone down well with the people, social media users, and opposition leaders alike
New Delhi: The sudden, untimely death of 26-year-old Ernst & Young (EY) India employee Anna Sebastian Perayil who allegedly died of overwork, has sparked nationwide outrage and questions over the demanding work culture.
Amidst this, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s remarks on Anna’s death have created an uproar as she has said that people need “inner strength to handle pressure and this can only be achieved by divinity”.
This has not gone down well with the people, social media users, and opposition leaders alike who have termed the remarks insensitive.
Nirmala Sitharaman, while addressing an event at a Chennai medical college, said, “Our children go to colleges and universities for education and come out with flying colours. A company, without mentioning its name, it’s a partnership. There, a woman who had studied CA well (was) unable to cope with the work pressure. Two-three days ago, we received news she died unable to cope with the pressure,” said the minister referring to Anna’s death. She also did not mention Ernst & Young, the company where she was working.
“What should families teach — whatever you study and the job you do, you should have the inner strength to handle that pressure and this can be achieved through divinity only. Believe in God, we need to have God’s grace. Seek God, and learn good discipline. Your Atmashakti (spiritual strength) will grow only from this. The inner strength will come only with growing Atmashakti,” said Sitharaman.
“Educational institutions should bring in divinity and spirituality. Then only will our children get the inner strength, it will help in their progress and that of the country. That is my strong belief,” said the minister, as reported by the news agency PTI.
Reacting to Nirmala Sitharaman’s comments, Priyanka Chaturvedi, the Rajya Sabha MP from Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), hit out at the Finance Minister’s remarks.
“Dear Nirmala Sitaraman ji, Anna had (the) inner strength to handle the stress that came with pursuing a gruelling Chartered Accountancy degree. It was the toxic work culture, long work hours that took away her life which needs to be addressed. Stop victim shaming and at least try to be a little sensitive, am sure god will be the guide if you seek,” said Chaturvedi.
CPI MP P Sandosh Kumar said the Finance Minister is “belittling and demeaning everyday struggles of working people across the country”.
“Over-work, inhuman working conditions, pervasive unemployment and lack of social security are creating stress and insecurity among workers, particularly the younger sections of our workforce across occupations. Instead of addressing these structural concerns, the finance minister’s advice to ‘rely on God’ is bizarre and insensitive,” he said in a statement.
Congress MP and Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi also highlighted the issue, saying that a bright and ambitious young professional’s life was “tragically cut short by toxic and unforgiving work conditions”.
“I have promised Anna’s family my personal commitment, along with the full support of the Congress party, to ensure that this tragedy becomes a catalyst for change,” said Gandhi.
The matter came to light after Anna’s mother Anita Augustine wrote to Ernst & Young India Chairman Rajiv Memani where she mentioned that her daughter had died just four months after she joined the company and flagged a work culture that “seems to glorify overwork while neglecting the very human being behind the role”.
“Anna would return to her room utterly exhausted, sometimes collapsing on the bed without even changing her clothes, only to be bombarded with messages asking for more reports. She was putting in her best efforts, working very hard to meet the deadlines. She was a fighter to the core, not someone to give up easily. We told her to quit, but she wanted to learn and gain new exposure. However, the overwhelming pressure proved too much even for her,” she wrote.
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