Nashik: The controversy surrounding alleged religious coercion at the Nashik office of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has intensified, with the father of one of the accused strongly denying all charges, even as serious allegations by employees continue to surface.

Bilal Fakir Mohammad Attar, father of the accused Tausif Attar, has claimed that his son has been falsely implicated in a pre-planned manner. “We are well-educated. I am a graduate, and my son has completed his BCA. Whatever is happening is wrong. It is not the fault of my son or any other child. All allegations against them are false,” he said, defending his son amid mounting scrutiny.

Meanwhile, allegations of religious coercion have emerged as the central issue in the case. A male employee has alleged that staff were forced to wear skullcaps, recite the Kalma and offer namaz as part of a pattern of workplace harassment. The complainant, who worked under Taushif Attar and Danish Sheikh, claimed that refusal to comply often resulted in intimidation, isolation, and excessive workload.

Describing his ordeal, the employee alleged a deeply hostile work environment where personal boundaries were routinely violated. he claimed that senior officials mocked employees’ personal lives. In a particularly disturbing allegation, he said he was asked to ‘send his wife’ to management while the couple was undergoing fertility treatment.

The case has widened with multiple complaints, including from women employees who alleged they were pressured to observe fasts during Ramzan, cover their heads, and, in some instances, were subjected to sexual exploitation. The complaints indicate that the accused group allegedly targeted young women employees between 18 and 25 years of age.

Police have so far registered at least nine FIRs in connection with the case, including one by a male employee citing religious harassment and attempted conversion. The FIRs detail allegations such as verbal abuse, coercion to consume non-vegetarian food, and insults directed at religious beliefs.

Eight individuals have been arrested so far, including Danish Sheikh, Tausif Attar, Raza Memon, Shahrukh Qureshi, Shafi Sheikh, Asif Aftab Ansar and Shahrukh Sheikh, along with one woman. Investigations are ongoing to establish the full extent of the alleged misconduct and determine accountability.

Melbourne, April 17: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Friday that a major fire that broke out at one of Australia’s two oil refineries will have a minimal impact on fuel production.

Albanese on Friday returned early from an official trip to Brunei and Malaysia to inspect the damage at Viva Energy’s refinery southwest of Melbourne after equipment failure caused a major fire on Wednesday night. The fire was extinguished around midday on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters at the refinery, Albanese said that the timing of the fire was “regrettable” amid the oil supply crisis caused by the conflict in the Middle East, but that it would have a minimal impact on production.

“The advice that we’ve received today is that 80 per cent of diesel production is continuing, 80 per cent of aviation fuel is continuing,” said Albanese, who was in Brunei and Malaysia for talks on fuel security.

Petrol production at the facility, which provides 10 per cent of Australia’s national fuel supply, was at 60 per cent of capacity on Friday and there are hopes that it can “ramp up” in the coming days, Albanese said.

He said that the government would provide its regular weekly update on fuel stockpile levels on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Authorities said on Thursday that equipment failure caused a major fire at an Australian oil refinery that is expected to affect the national fuel supply.

The fire broke out at Viva Energy’s refinery in the city of Geelong, 65 km southwest of Melbourne, around 11 p.m. local time on Wednesday and was continuing to burn on Thursday morning.

The facility is one of only two operational refineries in Australia and produces about 10 per cent of the national fuel supply.

Michelle Cowling, deputy commissioner of the fire and rescue service in the state of Victoria, told Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) radio that equipment failure in the refinery caused the fire.

Thane: Police in Maharashtra’s Thane district have registered a case after a businessman alleged that veterinary raw material worth about Rs 45 lakh was pilfered from his consignment, an official said on Friday.

According to the complaint, the incident took place between January and April, during which unidentified persons allegedly stole Amprolium HCL, a veterinary raw material in powdered form.

A police official said that the businessman had dispatched a consignment to a company in Dehradun in January through a transporter from Bhiwandi in Thane district.

During transit, someone allegedly stole 41 drums of the material, weighing around 1,025 kg, and replaced them with fake substances of similar appearance.

The matter came to light when the receiver informed the supplier regarding discrepancies in the consignment.

The value of the stolen material has been estimated at Rs 44.85 lakh, police said, adding that a probe into the matter was underway.