A 22-year-old Uber cab driver was arrested for allegedly abducting and sexually harassing a woman passenger, the police said.
The app-based cab aggregator has, however, called it a case of “identity theft”.
According to the police, the accused was identified as Sanjeev alias Sanju, a resident of Gannaur, Haryana. He used to drive the vehicle even though he was not registered as the driver of the vehicle and did not have a driving licence. It was also found that that the vehicle did not have a commercial numberplate. Police said it was found that the man, who was registered with the Uber as the vehicle's driver, had given his vehicle to Sanju to drive.
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In a statement, the cab aggregator Uber said they have initiated action against the errant driver and are cooperating with the police in the investigation.
On March 9, a 29-year-old woman, who works with an advisor in an MNC, booked an Uber cab from Kundli in Haryana for her residence in Sector-3, Rohini, they said.
When the cab arrived, she noticed that the vehicle had a white number plate instead of the commercial number plate and also had tinted glasses, the police said.
The woman grew suspicious of the driver as his face did not match with the image of the driver provided by Uber on the app, they said.
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The driver, who was allegedly drunk, took the vehicle along a secluded route in Narela. The woman alleged that he was making unwanted advances, the police said.
The driver was taking a different route than the one she used to usually take for her home. When she tried to get out from the vehicle at a traffic signal, the driver locked the doors using central lock and threatened her, the police said.
When the car slowed down at a CNG station near GTK depot, she took the opportunity to unlock the door and jumped out of the car. The driver absconded from the spot with his vehicle, they said.
During investigation, the details of the vehicles and drivers were obtained from Uber and the cab was traced to Janti Kalan village in Sonipat, Haryana.
A police team visited the village on the intervening night of March 9 and 10 and traced the vehicle in which a man was found lying in a drunken state, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Northwest) Aslam Khan said.
The investigators are examining the original driver's culpability and have also sent a questionnaire to the cab aggregator firm in connection with the case. A reply is awaited, they said.
An Uber spokesperson said that have removed the driver who allowed another man to drive his vehicle.
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“The drivers in the present incident have violated the terms of the agreement that Uber signs with its driver-partners. Such behaviour puts our riders and driver partners at risk and is not tolerated.
"We immediately removed the driver partner's access to the app and will take strict action against him for letting an unregistered driver without a licence access his account and take trips via the app," the spokesperson said.
He said the company is "ready to support law enforcement authorities with any information needed for their investigation."
(With PTI inputs)
