In a rather surprising turn of events, following a contentious video that circulated around a heated encounter between a customer and a bank employee, Aastha Singh, who is under fire for her unprofessional behaviour, issued a statement claiming that she was threatened and harassed, which was the cause of her outburst.
The video, shot at the Panki branch in Kanpur, showed Singh lashing out at an individual, even adopting an aggressive tone and vocabulary, as well as claiming her caste identity, stating, “Thakur hoon main.”
Not a customer dispute: Staffer sets record straight
Some of the statements she made in her clarification video included various “misinterpretations” concerning her actions. However, there were two key issues she highlighted to reduce public outrage against her involvement:
Internal conflict, not customer service: Singh explained that the individual in the video was no ordinary bank customer but the husband of his colleague, who had just resigned.
Timeline of events: She explained that the incident is not fresh because it happened on January 6, though it went viral this week.
The trigger: ‘I won’t tolerate threats’
In the account given to Singh, the dispute apparently started after a minor argument with the sister-in-law of Singh’s colleague earlier that day. Her account claimed that the colleague’s husband had “stormed” into the bank at 4:30 PM after the public dealing hours, specifically to intimidate Singh.
“He behaved badly with me, and he himself asked about my caste. He told me that I have too much pride in me,” Singh said. Further, she alleged that he threatened her at her table, saying that he would “teach her a lesson” and “get out her arrogance” (Hekdi nikal dunga).
#SupportAsthaSingh pic.twitter.com/G8Z1iXbN9D
— Aman Singh (@77_com7) February 9, 2026
“Yes, my words were wrong,” Singh admitted. “I am in public service and ought to choose my words carefully. But if the threat is to teach me a lesson, I will not tolerate that.”
Standing by her identity
On the criticism regarding the use of caste-based statements, Singh refrained from budging. Even though she agreed that the workplace was not an appropriate arena for the vehement exchange, she did not compromise on claiming her identity.
“I continue to stand by my statement that ‘I am a Thakur,’ and I am completely proud of this fact,” she stated in her video.
HDFC Bank’s stance
While HDFC Bank has previously emphasised its commitment to a code of conduct and professional behaviour among staff, it has not yet issued a fresh statement following Singh’s specific allegations of personal harassment and workplace intimidation.
The incident has sparked a wider debate on social media regarding workplace safety for women versus the maintenance of professional decorum in the service industry.
ALSO READ | How does IMD predict rain? Inside India’s AI-powered weather forecasting technology
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: ZEE News
