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Bengaluru shocker: Bike-taxi driver accused of changing route, harassing woman - Report

A bike-taxi driver in Bengaluru allegedly diverted his route and sexually harassed a 28-year-old woman. The driver denies the claims.

Updated on: Aug 10, 2024, 10:04:05 IST
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A bike-taxi driver in Bengaluru is accused of altering his route and sexually harassing a 28-year-old woman. The incident occurred between 11:40 pm and midnight on July 5, News 18 reported.

The woman alleged that the bike taxi driver drove to a secluded area, stopped the bike, and proceeded to harass her. (Representational Photo/HT)
The woman alleged that the bike taxi driver drove to a secluded area, stopped the bike, and proceeded to harass her. (Representational Photo/HT)

The woman, who lives in Radha Reddy Layout on Sarjapur Road and works as a store supervisor at a local hotel, reported to Bellandur Police that she had booked a bike-taxi at 11:20 pm to join her husband for dinner.

The driver has been identified as Biswajit Nath, a man in his early 20s, who reportedly arrived at her residence at 11:40 pm. According to her complaint, Nath diverted from the planned route, claiming it was due to waterlogging. During the trip, the woman received a call from a friend and spoke in Bengali. Nath then began conversing with her in the same language.

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The woman alleged that Nath drove to a secluded area, stopped the bike, and proceeded to harass her. “He claimed that due to waterlogging, he’s taking alternative roads. Meanwhile, I got a call from my friend, and I spoke to her in Bengali. Biswajit asked me if I was Bengali and he started conversing with me in the language. He took me to an isolated place and stopped the bike. When I questioned him, he started touching me inappropriately and asked me to cooperate with him,” the woman was quoted as saying to another publication.

The woman added that Nath chased and slapped her when she attempted to escape. “He snatched my mobile phone and cash too. I pleaded with him to leave me unharmed. After almost 30 minutes, he realised that I won’t give up. I requested him to drop me at the location or home as I was not aware of which place it was, and there were hardly any people in the area. I could not note down his bike number. My husband came and picked me up. Rapido responded to my complaint, stating they would terminate Biswajit. They gave me his name and mobile number. I filed a complaint,” she told the publication.

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Nath was later located by the police, who said he denied the allegations, describing them as a misunderstanding. He claimed that he took the detour due to waterlogging and that the woman misunderstood his actions. Nath also stated that the passenger asked to be dropped off short of her destination and refused to pay the fare, prompting him to take the money forcibly.

The police are currently investigating both versions of the story.

  • Yamini C S
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Yamini C S

    Yamini CS is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with nearly six years of experience in digital journalism. She is part of the India News desk, where she works on a wide range of stories cutting across civic issues, city-based developments, politics, governance, public policy, breaking news, trending topics, and international affairs that have an impact on India. Her role involves tracking fast-moving developments, verifying information from official and on-ground sources, and presenting news in a clear, accessible format for a digital-first audience. A significant part of her work includes handling live blogs during major news events, such as elections, court verdicts, political developments, civic disruptions, protests, weather-related alerts, and unfolding national or international incidents. Through live coverage, she focuses on timely updates to help readers follow complex stories as they evolve. Before moving to the broader India News desk, Yamini was associated with the Bengaluru desk at Hindustan Times, where she extensively covered urban governance, infrastructure, traffic and transport issues, weather events, public grievances, and civic administration in the city. This experience strengthened her grounding in city reporting and sharpened her focus on citizen-centric journalism. She began her career as a correspondent with Reuters after completing a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media. Her early training instilled a strong emphasis on accuracy, sourcing, and news ethics, which continue to shape her reporting style. Outside of work, Yamini enjoys reading across genres, listening to music, and spending time with her family, which help her maintain balance in a fast-paced newsroom environment.Read More