New Delhi: A woman has come forward with a disturbing account of alleged sexual harassment by a Zomato delivery agent. In a post on X, the woman said the incident happened when she ordered coffee late Tuesday night amid heavy rain in Ahmedabad. She said although the delivery was delayed, she understood the situation and did not mind waiting.
"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," she wrote.
She further said that the delivery agent named Shwetang Joshi repeatedly mentioned an injury he had sustained, pointing to his foot.
She then said she shone her flashlight on the driver's feet and alleged that his genitals were exposed.
"He was laughing and mockingly telling me "Mam, please help krdo (Please help me)," the woman alleged.
She said she immediately reported the incident to Zomato but the company's response only added to her distress.
"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.
The woman admitted to being "traumatised and infuriated" because she claimed to know "a lot of women who go through something similar multiple times a week and do not speak up."
In an update later, she said that Zomato connected with her and took the necessary steps, but she still felt "unsafe". She said the delivery driver had been terminated, and his licence revoked.
"I won't say I feel safe now, I still feel unsafe, but they did what they could," she said.
She admitted she was still "paranoid" about the possibility of the driver returning to her address but found some reassurance in having legal support.
NDTV reached out to Zomato for a comment, but the company has not responded yet.