The controversy surrounding Infosys escalated as more than 100 terminated employees sent complaint letters to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) seeking intervention to reverse their dismissals and safeguard against similar layoffs in the future claims report in a national daily. The Central Labour Ministry has stepped in urging Karnataka’s labour commissioner to investigate the matter claimed ET report. The dismissed employees most of whom failed an internal assessment test claim they were unfairly pressured into resigning. However Infosys has denied any allegations of intimidation asserting that its actions align with company values. Employees Seek Government Help In their letters to the PMO the affected employees called for their reinstatement and requested measures to prevent future incidents of mass layoffs. Acting on these complaints the Central Labour Ministry issued a notice to Karnataka’s labour commissioner asking for an inquiry and necessary action under applicable labour laws. The ministry’s letter dated February 25 included complaints from 117 employees and emphasized the need to protect employees rights. The notice was also sent to Harpreet Singh Saluja president of the Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) an organization advocating for IT employees welfare. Infosys Under Scrutiny The controversy began earlier this month when India’s second-largest IT services company laid off more than 300 freshers at its Mysuru campus. The trainees who had waited nearly two years for onboarding before starting in October 2024 were terminated after failing internal assessments during foundational training. The IT employees’ union NITES condemned the mass layoffs alleging that employees were pressured into signing mutual separation letters and that bouncers were used during the process. They urged the Ministry of Labour and Employment to take strict action against Infosys. Infosys Denies Allegations Infosys Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Shaji Mathew declined the allegation and stated that the company did not use intimidation tactics or involve bouncers. He maintained that the layoffs were performance-related and denied claims of forced resignations. “I can’t even imagine us thinking about bouncers. These are our trainees and we don’t need to bring in bouncers. That is absolutely not correct” Mathew said in an interview with PTI. Mathew acknowledged that the assessment failure rate was ‘slightly higher’ this time but emphasized that the company followed fair practices. He also addressed concerns about accommodations at the Mysuru campus stating that trainees who wished to remain on campus were allowed to do so. Union’s Demands NITES continues to demand a full investigation into the layoffs stating that the termination process violated employee rights. The union called for stricter regulations to ensure IT companies cannot unfairly dismiss employees in the future.