Amid the concerns over rising insecurity for women in the country, an Ahmedabad woman faced a disturbing account of alleged sexual harassment by a Zomato delivery agent.
She shared her ordeal on social media X, where she posted that the delivery agent allegedly showed his genitals while delivering food.
The woman mentioned that she was infuriated and traumatised on the late night of 27 August, citing several women who face similar situations but don’t speak up.
The woman said that she had ordered a coffee amid heavy rain in Ahmedabad. However, due to a heavy downpour, the delivery was delayed. When she asked the delivery agent for the reason, he mentioned rain, which she understood.
“The delivery partner was apologising constantly about the delay while smiling, which made me uncomfortable, but I let it slide, thinking I was just being paranoid given the current situation in the country,” NDTV quoted her as writing.
In her post, she stated that the delivery agent named Shwetang Joshi continuously spoke regarding his injury which he sustained and pointed at his foot when he reached at her doorstep.
When the woman shone her flashlight on the driver’s feet, she alleged that his genitals were exposed.
“He was laughing and mockingly telling me ‘Mam, please help krdo (Please help me)’,” the woman alleged.
Following this, she immediately reported the incident to Zomato, but didn’t receive any satisfactory answer.
“The lady on the call said they would hear the situation from both sides, meaning me and the delivery partner,” she wrote.
“Who in their right mind would bother connecting with Zomato customer care at 1 AM in the morning, not asking for a refund or anything? I just wanted actions to be taken right away. But being a woman, to be asked to ‘wait till further notice’ is disgusting and invalidating,” she complained.
“I haven’t received a call back from Zomato regarding this, which makes me think how unsafe it is to even order food in case of emergencies. Shame on you and your ‘ethics’ of delivering safely,” she added.
Zomato’s action:
Later, the woman wrote he was approached by Zomato, which informed her that the delivery driver had been terminated and his license revoked.
“I won’t say I feel safe now, I still feel unsafe, but they did what they could,” she said.
Though the woman still feel insecure, as she fears the possibility of the driver returning to her address. Zomato even offered her legal assistance.
