Bangalore, December 17
Shell shocked IT and BPO employees today took out a protest demanding a safe and secure Bangalore even as Karnataka Chief Minister N. Dharam Singh directed the police to step up vigil following the rape and murder of a recently married IT employee by a company pick-up driver who was taking her to her work place in the wee hours.

Though the incident occurred at 2.30 a.m. on December 13, the body of the 28-year-old BPO employee Pratibha Srikanthmurthy, who was working for HP Global Delivery Applications Services, was discovered yesterday evening. A pick-up driver of a company-leased car had raped her, following which he slit her throat and dumped her body in a pit near the road.

The employees staged a protest near the statue of Mahatma Gandhi on MG Road here this afternoon. The employees demanded that the police take measures to provide security to women employees travelling on roads at night. All-India Democratic Women’s Association general secretary Vimala KS said the issue of women security should be tackled at the highest level and that the responsibility for the safety of women should be shared by both IT and BPO companies as well as the government.

Some employees demanded that the driver of the pick-up car should be awarded capital punishment. All of them were, however, unanimous that BPO companies should ensure that women travelling alone at night were accompanied by security guards. They also demanded more vigorous patrolling in areas were IT and BPO companies were located.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister has directed the police force to step up vigil in the city. Bangalore Commissioner Ajai Kumar Singh has announced that he is calling a meeting with heads of various call centre managements to evolve a fool proof system for transporting women to work during evening and late night hours.

National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) president Kiran Karnik while speaking on the issue on the sidelines of the Indian Strategy Summit here today, said the industry on its part would continue its dialogue with the police to create a conducive atmosphere for women working in the BPO industry.