MUMBAI — In a staggering escalation of a long-standing grievance, a female Manager at the Central Bank of India has accused the institution of utilizing “orchestrated silence” as a tool of mental harassment. Pragati Srivastava, currently posted in the Cooch Behar Region, alleges she has been subjected to 43 months of willful neglect, during which 80 official representations regarding her service and benefits have gone entirely unacknowledged.
Systemic Harassment and Financial Starvation
Ms. Srivastava reports that she has not received her salary for over two years. This period includes six months of maternity benefits that were allegedly withheld during a high-risk pregnancy and a subsequent C-section delivery. The officer describes this as a direct violation of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, labeling the financial freeze an “inhuman, strategic tool” to target a female employee during her most vulnerable period.
A Pregnancy Under “Rigorous” Enquiry
The complaint outlines a harrowing timeline where a departmental enquiry was initiated and conducted throughout the entirety of Ms. Srivastava’s nine-month pregnancy.
Even while bedridden with severe typhoid in July 2025, she was allegedly forced to respond to bank correspondence within a 7-day window to avoid “consequences”.
Despite the enquiry concluding six months ago, the bank has reportedly failed to communicate any outcome, maintaining a state of “unlawful” uncertainty.
A request for sabbatical leave to care for her ailing two-year-old son was also declined, marking her as “Loss of Pay” and further compounding her financial distress.
Demands for Humanitarian Intervention
The officer is currently facing threats of termination if she does not report to Cooch Behar immediately. Ms. Srivastava argues that rejoining a post 1,000 km away from her native Varanasi is impossible as she is the primary caregiver and lactating mother of a five-month-old infant.
In her escalation to the General Manager of Human Capital Management, she is demanding:
Immediate credit of all pending salary and maternity pay.
Compassionate posting to Varanasi, as per bank policies for mothers with infants under two years.
Procedural closure regarding the pending enquiry that has remained in limbo since July 2025.
“Such orchestrated silence cannot be dismissed as procedural delay,” the grievance states, “it demonstrates a patriarchal mindset within management, where non-response is used as a tool of vengeance”.
