A job applicant was denied employment by a Surat and Mumbai-based diamond export house on the grounds of being a Muslim.
Zeeshan Ali Khan, an applicant with a master’s in business administration, wrote to Hari Krishna Exports on Tuesday for a position in the Internal Business division. In response, a human resources executive emailed him back, rejecting his candidature. “We regret to inform you that we hire only non-Muslim candidates,” the email read, explaining why his application had been turned down.
Khan then posted his experience on Facebook, where it caused outrage eventually compelling Hari Krishna Exports emailing Khan on Wednesday, regretting their actions.
Speaking to Scroll.in over the phone, company founder Savji Dholakia denied any institutional discrimination at play and blamed it on the actions of a lone employee, Dipika Tike, who he claimed has recently joined the company. On professional networking website, LinkedIn, however, Tike’s profile shows that she has been with Hari Krishna for five months now.
Diverse staff, Haridwar yatras
Dholakia claimed that diversity lies at the heart of Hari Krishna and they already have Muslims working for it."We have 71 Muslims in our firm along with people from all castes such as Patels and Marwaris". When asked how he knew the exact number of Muslims working for his company, Dholakia said they had to count them after this controversy broke, refusing to elaborate on the matter further. "We have people from 26 districts, 86 taluqas and 386 villages who work for us," said Dholakia.
He claimed that this charge of religious discrimination is absurd since they have great HR policies in place. "We take our entire company as well as the parents of our employees on a Haridwar Yatra every year. We are a like a family," Dholakia said.
Ironically, the company was in the news earlier for its pro-employee HR policies which included extravagant bonuses such as cars and flats. Last year, as part of its Diwali bonus, the company gave out 424 Fiat Punto Evo cars and 207 two-bedroom flats, earning it the tag of a "highly sought-after employer."
Hari Krishna Exports is a major diamond polisher and exporter with exports worth Rs 6,000 crore. The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council of India has awarded the company multiple times in the past decade.
In response to this incident, lawyer and activist, Shehzad Poonawalla has filled a petition with the National Commission of Minorities drawing their attention to this “case of discrimination against a Muslim job seeker”.
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Zeeshan Ali Khan, an applicant with a master’s in business administration, wrote to Hari Krishna Exports on Tuesday for a position in the Internal Business division. In response, a human resources executive emailed him back, rejecting his candidature. “We regret to inform you that we hire only non-Muslim candidates,” the email read, explaining why his application had been turned down.
Screengrab of the email Khan received from Hari Krishna Exports.
Khan then posted his experience on Facebook, where it caused outrage eventually compelling Hari Krishna Exports emailing Khan on Wednesday, regretting their actions.
Speaking to Scroll.in over the phone, company founder Savji Dholakia denied any institutional discrimination at play and blamed it on the actions of a lone employee, Dipika Tike, who he claimed has recently joined the company. On professional networking website, LinkedIn, however, Tike’s profile shows that she has been with Hari Krishna for five months now.
Diverse staff, Haridwar yatras
Dholakia claimed that diversity lies at the heart of Hari Krishna and they already have Muslims working for it."We have 71 Muslims in our firm along with people from all castes such as Patels and Marwaris". When asked how he knew the exact number of Muslims working for his company, Dholakia said they had to count them after this controversy broke, refusing to elaborate on the matter further. "We have people from 26 districts, 86 taluqas and 386 villages who work for us," said Dholakia.
He claimed that this charge of religious discrimination is absurd since they have great HR policies in place. "We take our entire company as well as the parents of our employees on a Haridwar Yatra every year. We are a like a family," Dholakia said.
Ironically, the company was in the news earlier for its pro-employee HR policies which included extravagant bonuses such as cars and flats. Last year, as part of its Diwali bonus, the company gave out 424 Fiat Punto Evo cars and 207 two-bedroom flats, earning it the tag of a "highly sought-after employer."
Hari Krishna Exports is a major diamond polisher and exporter with exports worth Rs 6,000 crore. The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council of India has awarded the company multiple times in the past decade.
In response to this incident, lawyer and activist, Shehzad Poonawalla has filled a petition with the National Commission of Minorities drawing their attention to this “case of discrimination against a Muslim job seeker”.
