Ride-hailing app Namma Yatri suspended the driver even as the police detained him after an X post on the alleged incident went viral.
Published Jan 03, 2025 | 10:23 PM ⚊ Updated Jan 04, 2025 | 2:16 PM
The woman got suspicious after the driver deviated from the designated route.
A 30-year-old woman jumped out of a moving autorickshaw to escape an allegedly drunk driver, who took the vehicle away from the designated route in East Bengaluru on Thursday, 2 January, night.
The woman, a resident of Tanisandra, escaped unhurt. The driver was detained after her husband narrated the incident on X, and tagged Bengaluru city police. Namma Yatri, an online vehicle-hailing application, suspended the driver from its platform.
Azar Khan, the woman’s husband, said on social media that she booked the ride on Namma Yatri app from Horamavu to Thanisandra. She got suspicious after the driver took the autorickshaw towards Hebbal, instead of the usual route.
Khan said the driver did not stop despite the woman’s multiple requests. After the three-wheeler had reached Nagavara, the driver took the vehicle towards a flyover. The woman jumped off the vehicle as it slowed on the down ramp.
The driver, Khan alleged, still did not leave the woman. He approached her again, asking her to board the vehicle. She refused, paid the fare, and took another autorickshaw home, he said.
Khan said his wife realised the driver was drunk on seeing his reddened eyes and erratic behaviour.
The man’s post of X soon gained traction. Namma Yatri responded to the post thanking him for raising the issue and offered assistance in pursuing the case.
“Thank you for your time over the call, Azhar. Please DM us for further assistance on this,” Namma Yatri said.
Fearing reprisal, the woman was reluctant to report the incident to the police. However, the police acted based on Khan’s X post.
When contacted Khan said he was at the police station, and that the driver has been detained. The driver, meanwhile, claimed innocence, and said he inadvertently took a wrong turn. He denied any intention of misbehaving with the woman.
The incident has reignited discussions on passenger safety in app-based vehicles.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
