Bengaluru woman alleges Rapido driver masturbated mid-ride

A woman from Bengaluru has accused a Rapido taxi driver of masturbating and sexually harassing her on Friday. The woman said on Twitter that she welcomed the trip home from the town hall after attending a protest held against the violence in Manipur. She added that she was forced to opt for a bike due to multiple cancellations from auto-rickshaw taxis.

She claimed that the Rapido driver arrived on a different bike than the one registered on the app and explained that it was being serviced. After confirming the ride through the app, the journey began.

On the way to the destination, the man allegedly started masturbating while driving the motorbike with his other hand, the woman wrote. “During the trip, we reached a remote area with no other vehicles. Shockingly, the driver started riding with one hand and engaged in inappropriate behavior (masturbation while riding a bike). Fearing for my safety, I remained silent throughout the ordeal," she wrote.

The Twitter user said she asked the driver to drop her off a few meters from her home with the intention of not revealing her location. Even though she paid the full amount for the ride, she claimed that the rider kept calling and texting her. She shared a screenshot of an inappropriate message allegedly sent by the driver on WhatsApp and said she blocked him. “I asked him to drop me off 200 meters from my real destination to hide my home location. As soon as the ride was over, he started calling and messaging me relentlessly on WhatsApp. I had to block his number to stop the harassment,” she wrote on Twitter.

Tagging the cycle taxi aggregator in the thread, she questioned the measures taken to ensure the safety of customers and added that the driver continued to harass her from other phone numbers. “…what measures do you take for background checks? The security of your users should be your top priority. Please make sure that the people registered with your service can be trusted for a safe travel experience…” she added.

In response to the woman's allegations, an official unit of the Bengaluru police asked for the user's contact details. The city police tweeted, "We have informed @sjparkps to take necessary action in this regard, please DM your contact number."