A man accused a group of auto-rickshaw drivers in Kochi’s Palarivattom of harassing his wife for booking an Uber instead of using their services. Expressing his shock, he said he believed such incidents were confined to cities like Bengaluru and never imagined it happening in his hometown. His post triggered a flood of reactions on social media, with many users sharing similar experiences, as reported by the Hindustan times
“As the title suggests, my wife was heading home after work and booked an Uber auto near Palarivattom round. After she entered the Uber and provided the driver with the pin for the ride, the next thing she saw was a group of auto drivers surrounding her vehicle,” he wrote. He went on to explain that the drivers encircled the Uber, starting a confrontation, with the Uber driver accusing her of booking a cab instead of using their services.
The auto drivers then allegedly pressured her into canceling the ride despite her protests. The man ended his post by pointing out that the incident took place just “a few meters away” from a local police station.
One individual said, “Taking video or photos of the incident and reporting it to authorities or sharing it with the media is the only option.” Another person advised, “Tell her to carry pepper spray. If they surround her again, she should spray it in their faces. It’s unlikely these guys will report it to the police. Even if they do, she can claim it was in self-defense due to harassment and them preventing her from leaving. They harassed her, and she didn’t do anything illegal, so the law should be on her side.”
A third person commented, “Just curious, what if you cancel the Uber, get into their auto, let them take you to the location, and then refuse to pay? What can they do? They can’t complain to the police that the customer isn’t paying for a service they were forced into. Let them call the police, explain the situation, and yes, you’d eventually pay the driver, but they’ll definitely think twice before doing it again.”
The original poster (OP) responded, “I don’t think these people are afraid to get physical if it comes to that. If it were me, I would have walked to a metro station instead of going with them, but my wife was scared and went along with them unfortunately.”
A fourth person commented, “This seems to be happening a lot in Kerala these days. The only solution is to tell them you’re calling the cops and will only discuss things in front of them. From what I’ve seen and heard, they usually disappear after that. It’s worth trying next time.”
