Ola driver molests woman passenger, holds her 'hostage' in Bengaluru

Ola said in a statement on Wednesday that it had zero tolerance for such incidents and the driver had been suspended

A woman was allegedly molested by a driver attached to cab aggregator Ola en route for her residence in Bengaluru recently.

Ola said in a statement on Wednesday that it had zero tolerance to such incidents and the driver had been suspended on receiving the complaint.

It said the customer has been asked to lodge a formal complaint with the authorities.

"Safety of customers is our priority and we will continue to extend our full support to this investigation against the driver," the statement said.

As per her complaint to the Ola Cabs safety team, the driver, Rajashekar Reddy, misbehaved with her on the Outer Ring Road and held her "hostage" for quite some time by locking the car doors, during the ride from Indiranagar on Sunday night.

She twisted his arm and started banging on the door, following which he stopped misbehaving and drove to her house located in BTM Layout, the woman said.

According to the complaint, the driver warned her that she would face dire consequences if the matter was reported to the police or Ola Cabs management.

She said she complained only to the Ola Cabs safety team and did not lodge any complaint with the police.

"I have informed the police inspector of my area but I have not lodged a formal complaint," she said.

Asked why she has not lodged a police complaint, she said she was not a resident of Bengaluru and wanted to avoid "legal hassles" as she was leaving the city next month.

Ola Cabs has told her that Reddy has been suspended, she added.

Ola said, "We regret the unfortunate experience the customer had during her ride. We have zero tolerance for such incidents and the driver has been suspended from the platform as an immediate action upon receiving the complaint.