Ola gets caught in social media debate over free speech

Ride hailing platform Ola found itself in the midst of a social media storm on Friday over an emotionally charged political conversation between a passenger and the driver.

A passenger took to Twitter to detail out his conversation with the driver and asked Ola to ensure that "drivers would focus on driving than overhearing conversations and tagging people anti-nationals during their driving duties".

Ola responded to the series of tweets saying it has reported the driver-partner for corrective action.

Following this, #BoycottOla started trending as many Twitter users supported the driver's right to hold his own opinion. Well over 4,700 tweets with #BoycottOla were shared on Twitter.

Thereafter, Ola sent out another tweet saying: "We are respectful of all personal views and like India's democratic values, encourage healthy exchange of thoughts".

"None of the parties involved in this case have been penalised from using the platform and we urge everyone to respect difference of opinion at all times," it added.