Bengaluru News: A Rapido bike-taxi driver in Bengaluru has been accused of sexually harassing a 28-year-old woman passenger. The alleged incident occurred late at night on July 5, as the woman was travelling to join her husband for dinner. According to the woman's complaint filed with the Bellandur Police, she had booked a bike-taxi at around 11:20 PM to make her way to a local restaurant. The driver, identified as Biswajit Nath, a man in his early 20s, arrived at her residence in Radha Reddy Layout on Sarjapur Road at approximately 11:40 pm.

According to News 18 report, the woman, who works as a store supervisor at a nearby hotel, stated that Nath soon diverted from the planned route, claiming it was due to waterlogging in the area. During the journey, the woman received a call from a friend and spoke in Bengali. It was at this point that Nath allegedly engaged her in a conversation in the same language.

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The woman has accused Nath of driving to a secluded location and stopping the bike. "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.

The woman further alleged that when she attempted to escape, Nath chased and slapped her, also snatching her mobile phone and cash. "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," she told the News 18 report.

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Nath, on the other hand, has denied the allegations, claiming that he took the detour due to waterlogging and that the woman had asked to be dropped off short of her destination, refusing to pay the fare. He stated that he had to take the money forcibly as a result.

The police are currently investigating both versions of the incident and have assured that appropriate action will be taken based on the findings. The bike-taxi service provider, Rapido, has also stated that they will terminate Nath's contract if the allegations are found to be true.