It could signal the beginning of the end for what has been termed as the Indian Gang at the Nation Media Digital team after it has emerged that one of the experts has been fired from the Twin Towers.
Over a year ago, complaints had been raised through a series of anonymous letters that alleged that members of the Nation digital team were enduring endless suffering, abuse and instances of insubordination by a group of expatriates.
Business Today has now learnt that one of those experts, Kanwar Deep Singh, no longer holds a job at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) listed media firm.
Kanwar who was popularly known as Bull Dog along the corridors at Twin Towers, was the NMG Digital Lead-Business Development but has seen his contract terminated. “The exit was so fast the guy was literally on the next flight back to Gujarati!” an insider familiar with the matter who sought anonymity told Business Today.
The circumstances of his termination still remain unclear, but sources indicate gross misconduct could have been levelled against him and that the HR office, which has been receiving a host of grievances about the expat, could not ignore the complaints anymore.
“Kanwar has single handled managed to mess up relationships with stakeholders both internally and externally, with NMG missing out on crucial deals as clients do not want to work with the company due to his rude nature,” our insider said.
The Indian expat who has been at Nation Digital since November 2016 had previously worked in India for media companies India Today, HT Media and Indian Express Newspaper. He holds an MBA from the Punjabi University.
Kanwar was one arm of a trio of the Indian Gang that also comprises NMG Head of Digital Rashmi Chugh and Kudrat Sehgal, the Lead Digital Products.
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Last year, sections of Kenyan staff unable to raise the issue internally with management for fear of being victimised resorted to voice their grievances through anonymous letters protesting against what had come to be known to them as the Indian Gang.
In the anonymous letters, Kanwar was accused of verbally abusing local staff and using curse words at the slightest provocation. He was also alleged to have even clashed with a number of clients and partners, with one of the incidents resulting in a law suit by a partner after Kanwar allegedly used “unprintable words to the CEO of that company to the point the client severed the partnership.”
“Working at Nation Media, 7th floor has become a nightmare, from all the shouting, playing of Gujarat music during working hours, to episodes of loud laughing by the Indian gang,” the letter had stated. “All this happens in the full glare of the HR department and they are incapable of doing anything.”
With the departure of Kanwar, it now remains to be seen whether the Indian Gang that was allegedly running Nation Digital will continue to flourish. The firm’s digital strategy has reportedly failed to take off under the tutellage of the Indian Gang with revenues dwindling year on year.
“They are know to dismiss any proposals or ideas to grow NMG’s digital revenues that do not originate from them,” our source said.
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