MoS Suresh Gopi visits EY employee Anna Sebastian's family; assures to raise issue in Parliament as a 'father'
Union Minister Suresh Gopi visited the family of Anna Sebastian, a Kochi-based chartered accountant who died from work-related stress, to offer condolences. He said that Anna's death would be addressed in Parliament.
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FollowKochi: Union Minister Suresh Gopi visited the family of Anna Sebastian, a Kochi-based chartered accountant who died from work-related stress in Pune, to offer his condolences. After the visit, he shared with the media that he discussed the situation with Anna's family and expressed his belief that there was injustice involved.
He stressed the importance of preventing others from facing similar experiences and called for social reform. Gopi stated that Anna's death will be addressed in Parliament, emphasizing that he will speak about it not just as a minister, but as a 'father'. He also indicated that measures would be taken against companies that exploit their employees.
Anna Sebastian Perayil, a 26-year-old chartered accountant who had been employed with the international consulting firm Ernst & Young (EY) in Pune for just four months, passed away on July 20. According to her mother, Anna was excited to start her career at the prestigious firm, but the family’s world shattered when she passed away on July 20, 2024.
Sibi Joseph, the father of the deceased, told Asianet News that his daughter didn’t even have time to sleep or eat properly. He emphasized that the suffering his daughter endured should not be experienced by anyone else.
Ernst & Young India chairman Rajiv Memani has publicly expressed deep regret, particularly over the company’s absence at the funeral of Anna Sebastian.
Taking to LinkedIn, Memani expressed his sorrow, stating, "I truly regret the fact that we missed being present at Anna’s funeral. This is completely alien to our culture. It has never happened before; it will never happen again." His message struck a chord amid a growing chorus of concerns about the mental and physical toll that modern workplaces are exacting on employees.
The death of Anna, who had recently joined EY, has raised serious questions about the intensity of the workload she was reportedly grappling with. In a heartfelt letter, her mother, Anita Augustine, accused the firm of pushing her daughter to the brink. She suggested that relentless work pressure had contributed to Anna's tragic passing. Augustine claimed that no one from the company attended her daughter's funeral.
