Women workers at TATA Electronics protest after camera found in hostel bathroom in Hosur

Women workers of TATA Electronics in Nagamangalam, Hosur, staged a massive protest late on Tuesday (November 4, 2025) after a CCTV camera was found inside a bathroom at Vidiyal Residency, a state-of-art workers’ hostel of the company at Kelamangalam. A 22-year-old worker, Neelu Kumari Gupta, hailing from Odisha, was arrested by the Udhanapalli police in connection with the incident.

The police said Ms. Gupta’s friend, who is a native of Maharashtra, noticed the camera in the bathroom on Sunday (November 2). She had informed Ms. Gupta about it, and the latter apparently feigned shock. The affected worker had also alerted the other residents. According to the police, before the other girls were rallied back to the bathroom, the camera was removed by Ms. Gupta.

Late Tuesday evening, hundreds of women workers staged a sit-in outside Vidiyal Residency. When the police and the district administration reached the spot, the workers demanded that all the bathrooms be searched for cameras.

Krishnagiri Superintendent of Police P. Thangadurai told The Hindu that the company had conducted an internal inquiry, and on Tuesday morning, it found that Ms. Gupta had set up the camera. “She was counselled. Later, the workers hit the streets demanding action,” he said, adding that the police received a complaint from the worker hailing from Maharashtra, and they subsequently detained Ms. Gupta.

‘Company failed to inform police’

When asked why TATA Electronics failed to inform the police, Mr. Thangadurai said: “That was a mistake on their part. They ought to have first informed us even as they were conducting an internal inquiry.”

The accused woman claimed to the police she was blackmailed by her male friend into placing the camera, said a police source. “She was holding onto the camera for a week, unwilling to do it, before she installed it on Sunday. No video was sent. Since it was in plain sight, it was spotted by the complainant. In some way, the accused is a victim herself,” the officer contended.

The SP has constituted a special team to track the male friend and to verify Ms. Gupta’s claim. The man, also from Odisha, reportedly works as an earthmover operator in Bengaluru.

On Wednesday, over 200 police personnel were stationed at Vidiyal Residency. Additionally, 10 teams of 100 personnel combed nine out of the 11 blocks that were occupied by the residents.

Workers said that TATA Electronics has strict non-disclosure agreements that bar its employees from speaking to the media.