BENGALURU: A dispute over the drop-off location, compounded by language issues, resulted in a cab driver being assaulted by his passenger and two of his friends on Saturday night. Jagadish, a driver with a cab aggregator, was on night shift and was to pick up a customer, identified as Param, who had booked a cab from Hebbal junction. While booking the cab, Param had mentioned a location near his residence as the drop-off point.
Along the way, speaking in Hindi, he demanded that Jagadish drop him off at his residence. Jagadish, who does not know Hindi, replied to him in Kannada saying that he cannot drive in another direction as the drop-off location mentioned was near Windsor Manor bridge.
This led to an argument with Param insisting that Jagadish speak in Hindi and abusing him repeatedly. In the meantime, he also called two of his friends to the spot and the trio assaulted Jagadish, police said. The cab driver later approached Seshadripuram police station and filed a complaint. He also gave them video footage of the incident as evidence.
A senior police officer said that based on the details entered by the customer while booking the cab, they collected information and a police team was sent to Param’s residence from where he and his friend Thakur were arrested. Both work in private companies. While Param hails from Himachal Pradesh, Thakur is from Delhi.
“Param earlier had issues with some neighbours over trivial issues in the locality. We have also recorded the statement of an eyewitness who came to Jagadish’s rescue and helped him reach the police station,” the investigating officer said.Speaking to Express, Jagadish said, “Param booked the cab around 10pm but did not mention the drop-off location properly. So I dropped him at the location he had mentioned. He started abusing me and called two of his friends who attacked me.”A relative of Jagadish said the trio hit him in the face and chest. He was taken to Bowring Hospital where he was administered first aid.