BENGALURU, June 16 : A disturbing video showing a Rapido bike taxi driver assaulting a woman passenger in Bengaluru’s Jayanagar has gone viral, stoking public outrage and drawing renewed attention to the regulatory and legal vacuum surrounding bike taxi operations in Karnataka.
The incident occurred when the woman, an employee at a jewellery store, reportedly confronted the driver, S Suman, for rash driving and asked to alight mid-ride. A heated exchange followed, complicated by a language barrier – the woman spoke only English while the driver only Kannada.
According to the footage, the situation escalated after the woman allegedly refused to pay the fare and return the helmet. She is said to have struck the driver with a tiffin box, prompting Suman to retaliate by slapping her, causing her to fall to the ground. Despite bystanders gathering, no one intervened.
Suman, now in police custody, admitted to slapping the woman and making the inflammatory remark: “go back to your country.” He claimed the woman verbally abused him and grabbed his collar.
“She asked me to stop the bike in the middle of the road. I explained it was unsafe. She hit me, and I lost control,” he told police.
The woman, however, denied any aggression and stated she had completed the payment and returned the helmet.
“The driver wasn’t following traffic rules. He had no right to attack me. He told me to go back to my country just because I couldn’t speak Kannada. That’s unacceptable,” she told the media.
Police confirmed that while the woman was advised to file an FIR, she opted not to pursue it. A non-cognizable report has been registered, and investigation is ongoing.
This episode comes against the backdrop of a Karnataka High Court directive that declared bike taxis illegal and instructed the state government in April to suspend their operations. The government was initially granted six weeks to act, later extended by another six. With the 12-week period now over, the issue of enforcement remains in focus.
“Three months ago, the High Court declared bike taxis illegal. Even after granting a total of 12 weeks, aggregators have failed to comply. They must now abide by the order,” Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy said on Monday.
Rapido, which commands over 60% of Bengaluru’s bike taxi market, facilitates approximately 16.5 lakh rides daily and supports the livelihood of over 1.5 lakh gig workers across Karnataka.
The incident has reignited the debate over safety protocols, linguistic tensions in urban mobility, and the unchecked expansion of gig-based transport services amid legal ambiguities.
(UNI)
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