On November 9, 2019, G Santhiya, a 22 year old Dalit woman from Nagamalaipudukottai, ended her life by consuming pesticide shortly after she returned from work. G.Santhiya was a tailor at a garment factory in Kappalur. The production manager and supervisor of the factory ,Mani and Chitra (caste unreported) had been forcing her to work extra hours by using tactics of insult and telling her that she did not work well. G.Santhiya had complained to Mani and Chitra’s supervisors about the humiliation. Mani and Chitra retaliated, and made attempts to ‘teach her a lesson’ by harassing her,calling her by her caste name in front of the other workers and more. Unable to tolerate the shame and humiliation experienced in her workplace, G Santhiya was driven to suicide.
G.Santhiya’s workplace denied her a safe and healthy work environment. Her worker rights include being paid for working extra hours. G. Santhiya’s right to work with dignity was taken away through casteist insults and slurs directed at her. Mani and Chitra abused their power and used humiliation as a weapon to exploit her. They created a hostile work environment through tactics of shaming and blame. Her supervisors warned her about the possible future harassment and abuse she would face from not just her superiors but also possibly from her upper-caste peers. The distress caused by this behaviour drove G. Santhiya to suicide.
Source - https://www.huffpost.com/archive/in/entry/hathras-dalit-atrocities-privilege-rekha-raj-interview_in_5f7dd671c5b63de65f08b307
