Rapido driver arrested in Delhi for masturbating in front of student in cab

Cops said the 48-year-old driver misbehaved and attempted to touch her before she managed to escape and report the incident to police.

A Rapido cab driver on Wednesday was arrested after he allegedly masturbated in front of a woman student during a ride in north Delhi's Maurice Nagar area.

The student filed a written complaint, after which an FIR was registered and the accused was arrested. (ANI file photo for representation)

The incident took place on Monday when the woman had booked a Rapido cab to her college.

The 48-year-old driver from Delhi's Malka Ganj, identified as Lom Shankar, allegedly began misbehaving with her and later indulged in the indecent act while she was seated in the vehicle, PTI news agency reported, quoting police officials.

When she boarded the cab, Shankar had reportedly first asked her to sit in the front seat, but she declined and chose the rear seat. He then allegedly attempted to touch her and soon began masturbating while driving the vehicle, the police said.

The 22-year-old student hails from Karnataka's Bengaluru and had shifted to Delhi a couple of months ago after securing admission in a postgraduate course.

There was no immediate response from Rapido over the incident.

What had happened?

The student told police that she was running late for her classes when she booked a cab on Monday morning. The app showed an estimated arrival time of 10 minutes, but the driver called her requesting that she not cancel the ride and assured her that he was on his way.

“The incident took place on Monday when a student was travelling in a Rapido cab. She noticed that the driver's behaviour was suspicious as he asked her to sit in the front seat and then began acting inappropriately,” PTI quoted deputy commissioner of police (north) Raja Banthia.

After the driver tried to touch her inappropriately, she protested and raised alarms, which were ignored by him. After covering some distance, he halted the cab, when the student managed to get out of the vehicle and run.

The student spotted few police officers who were deployed at Kranti Chowk, whom she approached. The officers reached the cab only to find out that the driver had fled the scene. “We later obtained his details from Rapido and subsequently arrested him,” Banthia added.

The student filed a written complaint, after which an FIR was registered and the accused was arrested. The cab was also seized, the police said.

The forensic and crime team has inspected the vehicle and collected evidence, the report added.

(With inputs from PTI)