Update: Autorickshaw driver Rizwan Basha (40) was arrested on Friday for allegedly assaulting a woman in Domlur on April 8, after she questioned him for charging more than the prescribed fare. The case had made the rounds on social media, where several netizens brought it to the attention of the city police, as well as taxi aggregator Ola, to which the driver was reportedly affiliated with.
Bengaluru: A woman in a complaint posted on Ola Cabs facebook page said “I got into an autorickshaw on the condition I would pay by the meter. But he demanded Rs 30 extra once he started going to her destination. When I protested, he got angry and shouted, “Chal utar.”
When she said she’d complain to autorickshaw drivers nearby, Basha verbally abused her and stopped his vehicle. “He got off the autorickshaw and forcefully tried to drag me out by my wrist,” she wrote on the social media site.
The driver Rizwan Basha is affliated to the Ola cabs, but was off duty at the time and was driving the autorickshaw on his own time.
She called he police help line, but help was not forthcoming. She was told “come to the police station”.That’s when the driver started hitting her on her arm. When she took a cellphone photo of the driver, he got more furious and hit her again.
By then, police called her back and when she explained the situation they asked her to come to the police station and they can’t go to the spot.
Onlookers too didn’t come to her rescue.”He had hit me hard about three times by now and I was scared. I started screaming for help and people gathered around as if I was a circus monkey and this master was trying to tame me by hitting me. No one came to my rescue,” she wrote.
Although the incident did’nt happen when Basha was on duty with Ola, the operator said it terminated the driver’s service from its platform.
“Though it did not happen on a ride booked through Ola app, we have zero tolerance for such behaviour. We are working with the customer to share all driver information, so as to help her report this incident to the authorities. We are committed to the safety and security of all users of the Ola app at all times,” said Ola Cabs.
On their FB page, police said the case has been forwarded the Traffic Management Centre. The woman was yet to file a police complaint till Thursday evening.
