Bengaluru: The driver slapped the woman, causing her to fall to the ground.
- A video of a Rapido bike taxi driver assaulting a woman has gone viral in Bengaluru.
- The incident occurred in Jayanagar area after the woman confronted the driver over rash driving.
- Communication issues arose as the woman spoke English and the driver spoke only Kannada.
A video showing a Rapido bike taxi driver assaulting a woman passenger in Bengaluru's Jayanagar has gone viral on social media. The woman, who reportedly works at a jewellery store, is said to have confronted the bike taxi driver, Suman S, over rash driving after getting off mid-ride.
The argument escalated as the two were unable to communicate. She spoke only English while the rider spoke only Kannada. The woman allegedly refused to pay the fare and return the helmet. The situation worsened after the woman hit Suman. The driver was then seen slapping her, which threw on onto the ground.
Suman has been detained, and a police case has been filed against him.
In the video, the two were initially seen arguing and trying to convince the bystanders to intervene, but to no avail. Even after the man slapped her, no one tried to stop him.
The driver, meanwhile, has defended his action, claiming she asked her to stop the bike in the middle of the road. "She kept asking me to stop while I was in the middle of the road. I explained that someone would hit us from behind if we stopped there," said Suhas, the bike taxi driver.
Suman, however, admitted that he had asked the woman to "go back to your country".
He also alleged that the woman abused him and grabbed him by his collar. "She abused me and asked if I was educated or not... She continued to be rude to me... I asked her about the payment, but she kept abusing me. She grabbed my collar."
"I told her she doesn't have the right to get physical, she then hit me twice with a tiffin box, that's when I hit her back. I told her people were watching. But she kept raising her voice, Suman added.
Police sources say that they urged the woman to file an FIR, but she didn't want to pursue the matter. A non-cognizable report has been registered, and an investigation is underway.
The woman later told NDTV that the driver was not following the traffic rules. "Secondly, he should not have attacked me. I did the payment and gave the helmet," she added.
Confirming that he told her to "go back to your country" and demanding action against him, she said, "These Kannadigas have a language issue. I did not want to fight with him. (People from) many states would come and live here. Kannadigas be like we have to know the language, otherwise, get out of the state. But instead of using the "state" word, he used "country"."
Bike taxis, however, may not be seen on Karnataka's roads anymore, in view of a high court directive to the government in April to suspend the two-wheeler taxis. The state government had then argued that bike taxis cannot operate as commercial vehicles.
"Three months back, the court decided bike taxis were illegal. They had given six weeks. Again, on their request, they have given six more weeks. Now, 12 weeks are over, and they (aggregators) must follow the High Court's order," said Karnataka Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy.
Bengaluru, the country's tech hub, boasts a massive fleet of bike taxis, with Rapido holding 60% of the market share, clocking 16.5 lakh rides daily. Bike taxis employ at least 1.5 lakh gig workers across the state.
