Bengaluru: A Rapido driver, who misbehaved with a woman passenger during the ride and even afterwards harassed over the phone, has been arrested, police said on Sunday.
C.K. Baba, the Deputy Commissioner of Police for Bengaluru's South-East division, tweeted that his department had apprehended a "real sicko on wheels."
“BCP wont stand such indecent antics!. A criminal case is lodged at E’City PS on a guy who was pretending to be rapido bike rider!. We are swifter. Keep it clean or face the full force of the law.#SafeCity”, he said.
On July 21, the woman, Athira Purushothaman, tweeted that she had attended the Town Hall protest against the violence in Manipur and had reserved a Rapido vehicle to take her home. However, after multiple delays, she opted to take a Rapido bike to get back to her home.
The female activist tweeted for quite some time, "Surprisingly the driver arrived on a different bike, explaining that the one registered with@rapidobikeapp was under servicing." I confirmed by booking through his app and proceeded with the ride”.
She claimed that while they were in an isolated location with no other cars nearby, the driver started masturbating.
”During the journey, we reached a remote area with no other vehicles around. Shockingly the driver began riding with one hand engaging in inappropriate behaviour (Mastubrating while riding the bike). Fearing for my safety, I remained silent throughout the ordeal.”
Purushothaman claimed that even after she paid for the ride online, the driver continued to contact her via WhatsApp until she finally blocked his number.
She also included a screenshot of their conversation, in which the driver used a number of emoticons representing kisses and hearts to express his love for the passenger.
Taking the service, she asked: “@rapidobikeapp, what measures are you taking for background verification. Your user’s safety should be a top priority. Please ensure that people registered with your service can be trusted for a safe travel experience. He keeps calling me from different numbers even now.”—Inputs from Agencies