Despite becoming so modern, even in today’s India, women have to fear going out at night. We say this because, time after time, new incidents of women being harassed by men are reported. In the most recent incident, it has been reported that in Bengaluru, a 28-year-old woman has accused a Rapido bike-taxi driver of harassing her. She stated that he altered the route of her journey and later molested her. Thankfully, the police authorities have nabbed the Rapido rider.
Bengaluru woman gets harassed by Rapido rider
According to reports, the incident occurred late at night between 11:40 p.m. and midnight on July 5. The woman, who resides in Radha Reddy Layout on Sarjapur Road, works as a store supervisor at a local hotel. She reported that she had booked a Rapido bike-taxi at 11:20 p.m. to meet her husband for dinner.
Following this, the Rapido rider, Biswajit Nath, a man in his early 20s, arrived at her residence around 11:40 p.m. After this, their ride commenced; however, what followed was something that the woman was not expecting.
What happened?
As per the woman’s complaint, shortly after the journey began, Biswajit diverted from the planned route. He claimed that waterlogging on the main road necessitated taking alternative roads. This explanation seemed normal at first, but the situation soon escalated into a nightmare for the woman.
During the ride, the woman reported that she received a call from a friend and began conversing in Bengali. Upon realizing she was Bengali, Biswajit started speaking to her in the same language. He did this to create a false sense of familiarity. After this, as the ride continued, Biswajit allegedly drove to a secluded area and stopped the bike.
The woman stated that she then questioned the driver about the sudden stop. It was then that Biswajit reportedly began to touch her inappropriately and demanded her cooperation for sexual advances. The woman, terrified, tried to escape, but Biswajit allegedly chased after her, slapped her, and snatched her mobile phone and cash.
According to the victim, it did not end there as she stated that she pleaded with Biswajit to leave her unharmed. For nearly 30 minutes, she tried to reason with him, hoping for a way out of the terrifying situation.
Following this, after realizing that she was not going to comply with his demands, Biswajit eventually agreed to drop her off. He drove her to RMZ Ecoworld, where he returned her phone but kept Rs 800 of her money before fleeing the scene. The woman, shaken and unable to note down his bike number, called her husband, who came to pick her up.
Rapido’s Response and Ongoing Police Investigation
Following the incident, the woman lodged a complaint with the Bellandur Police. Rapido, the bike-taxi service, responded promptly to her report. They stated that they would terminate Biswajit Nath’s services. The company also provided Bina with his name and mobile number, which she relayed to the authorities.
The police managed to track down Biswajit, who denied the allegations. He claimed that the route diversion was indeed due to waterlogging and that the passenger misunderstood his actions. The rider then alleged that the woman asked to be dropped off a few meters short of her destination and refused to pay the fare.
He then stated that this led him to forcibly take the money from her. The police are currently investigating both sides of the story to determine the truth behind the conflicting accounts.