Bajaj Finance Employee Dies by Suicide After Allegedly Being Forced to Cover EMIs; ‘Hadn’t Slept for 45 Days’
Bajaj Finance Employee Dies by Suicide After Allegedly Being Forced to Cover EMIs; 'Hadn't Slept for 45 Days'
Amid rising cases of deaths due to work pressure, a 42-year-old area manager of a private finance company has allegedly ended his life by hanging at his home in Jhansi over “work pressure”, with his family alleging that he was “mentally tortured” by his seniors to complete recovery target.
Tarun Saxena, in his suicide note, described the difficult working conditions, mentioning that his superiors placed significant stress on him to meet deadlines, threatening salary deductions if he did not comply. He was found dead at home on Monday morning, having locked his wife and children in another room before the incident. In his distressing letter, Tarun identified Bajaj Finance and explained how he felt overwhelmed by the pressure to achieve targets, despite his efforts. He was responsible for collecting EMIs for the company and expressed feelings of hopelessness about the future, stating that he had lost his ability to think clearly. He also revealed that he and his colleagues were forced to cover the amounts of EMIs they could not recover, which he had reported to his superiors multiple times without any resolution. Tarun shared that he had not slept properly for 45 days, barely ate, and was under immense stress due to the demands from senior management to meet targets or resign.
In his note, Tarun expressed his wishes for his family, asking his parents to ensure that the second floor of their home is built so that his loved ones can live comfortably. He also mentioned taking care of Megha, Yatharth, and Pihu.
Bajaj Finance has not yet addressed the claims made regarding the situation.
Tarun’s cousin Gaurav shared insights with India Today about the pressure Tarun faced at work. He described Tarun as an area manager who was under constant pressure to increase collections. Gaurav noted that when Tarun did not meet the targets set by the company, his salary was reduced. He recounted an incident early in the morning when two individuals from Bhopal, Vaibhav Saxena and Prabhakar Mishra, held a meeting with Tarun, which seemed to have contributed to his distress leading up to his tragic decision.
Tarun’s suicide has sparked national outrage, particularly following the recent death of Anna Sebastian, a former employee at Ernst & Young (EY), who also succumbed to work-related stress. Earlier this month, Anna’s mother wrote a letter that went viral on social media, addressed to Rajiv Memani. In her letter, she expressed her sorrow over her daughter’s death just four months after starting at the company. She called on the leadership to rethink a work culture that “appears to glorify overwork while overlooking the human being behind the role.” Anna reportedly worked late into the night and even on weekends, leaving her with “no opportunity to catch her breath.”
In response, Memani expressed his deep sadness, stating, “I am deeply saddened and, as a father, I can only imagine Ms. Augustine’s grief. I have conveyed my heartfelt condolences to the family, although nothing can truly fill the void in their lives.”
