BENGALURU: Little Scholars, which operated a daycare centre at IT company Capgemini’s Bengaluru campus, has alleged two former employees staged videos of children in distress after being dismissed.They later used footage to demand money and reinstatement, it has alleged.The videos allegedly showed caregivers locking toddlers in bathrooms, spraying toilet-jet water into their mouths, and placing them inside the drum of a washing machine. Following the videos, Capgemini temporarily shut the creche. Police registered cases against five women and made arrests. The investigation is continuing.In a statement on Tuesday, Little Scholars accused former centre manager Manjula of acting in collusion with two employees. It alleged she introduced a man posing as a police officer under the name ‘Mahender’, who allegedly took Rs 20,000 from the creche and later demanded Rs 2.5 lakh.
Daycare co: Ex-staffers engineered plan for extortion and reinstatement
TOI could not independently verify these allegations. An email sent to Capgemini regarding this development did not elicit a response by press time.According to Little Scholars, the sequence of events began on June 25, when former employees Sujata and Vijayalaxmi R were allegedly involved in altercations during working hours.
Creche claims
Following the incident, proprietor Ramandeep Kaur instructed centre manager Manjula to terminate their employment and collect their company identity cards.“In retaliation, Sujata and Vijayalaxmi orchestrated a premeditated plan for extortion and reinstatement into the facility. To manufacture leverage and exact revenge against Little Scholars, the accused maliciously bypassed our strict security protocols to sneak a mobile phone into the facility,” the statement, reviewed by TOI , said.
Firm: Manager acting in collusion with 2 women
The company alleged the women took children who were unable to speak to areas outside CCTV coverage, staged scenes of distress and recorded them.The daycare centre said Kaur transferred the employees’ pending salaries along with 15 days’ severance pay on June 29.It alleged that Sujata denied receiving the money and threatened to release the videos.“Following the staging of this footage, the extortion plan escalated. Our former centre manager, Manjula, acting in collusion with the terminated employees, introduced an individual named ‘Mahender’ into the narrative,” the statement said.According to the company, four employees subsequently visited HAL police station, where a sub-inspector allegedly informed them that Mahender was not a police officer.Little Scholars claimed Manjula thereafter stopped cooperating and became untraceable.The daycare provider said Capgemini only provided the premises and infrastructure, while Little Scholars was responsible for staffing and day-to-day operations.
