Genpact employee says Ola driver harassed her, seeks action after ’nightmarish’ ride: ’Meri kisht pending hai’

In a harrowing account shared by Shazia, a senior manager at Genpact, she detailed a nightmarish experience with Ola Cabs that raises serious safety concerns, particularly for women using ride-hailing services. On December 20, 2024, at approximately 1:30 pm IST, Shazia found herself in a precarious situation when her driver inexplicably slowed down the cab after crossing a toll on their way to Gurgaon.

Despite her inquiries, the Ola cab driver remained unresponsive, and soon after, Shazia noticed two men gesturing for the driver to pull over. Alarmingly, the driver complied, parking the cab as instructed.

The situation escalated further when two additional men on bikes joined the scene, making it a total of five men, including the driver.

As the situation turned seemingly unsafe and more men approached, Shazia felt increasingly unsafe. The driver’s comment about his pending instalment only heightened her fear. “Meri kist pending hai (my installment is due), which left me terrified. I responded that his personal matters were not my concern and insisted he continue the trip.” Shazia recounted in her LinkedIn post.

In a desperate bid for safety, Shazia opened the right-side door and fled from the vehicle.

To compound her distress, when Shazia attempted to use the SOS button on the Ola app for help, it failed to work.

After filing a complaint with Ola (Ticket #7210244), Shazia expressed her disappointment at the lack of response from the company over 24 hours later.

However, a later report by NDTV suggests that Ola had reached out to her. Investigations into the incident is still pending.

Shazia emphasised that passenger safety should be a fundamental responsibility, urging Bhavish Aggarwal and Ola to take immediate action to address these alarming issues.

Despite Ola’s initiatives aimed at enhancing safety standards, such as their ’10 Steps to a Safer Ride’ programme which includes measures like mandatory sanitisation and driver training, incidents like Shazia’s highlight gaps in accountability and responsiveness.

As public awareness grows around such experiences, it is crucial for companies like Ola to prioritise passenger safety and ensure that their protocols are effective in real-world scenarios.