Woman Claims Harassment by Auto driver in Bengaluru for Being Non-Kannadiga
Woman Claims Harassment by Auto driver in Bengaluru for Being Non-Kannadiga
Amidst the debate on the reservation for Kannadigas Bill, a woman from Punjab recounts her troubling experiences with auto drivers in Bengaluru.
A woman from Punjab shared her troubling experiences while dealing with auto drivers in Bengaluru. She claimed that an auto driver demanded more money simply because she was a non-Kannadiga.
I was working in Bangalore for 1.5 years. Married in Punjab, I wore chooda for the entire 1 year as it is a part of my tradition. It was clearly evident I was from North India.
— Shaani Nani (@shaaninani) July 17, 2024
What a harassment it was to commute in auto from flat to office and back. The audacity of local auto…
A user named Shaani Naani took to X (formerly Twitter) and wrote, “I was working in Bangalore for 1.5 years. Married in Punjab, I wore chooda for the entire year as it is a part of my tradition. It was evident I was from North India.” She described the discrimination she faced, particularly with auto drivers.
“What a harassment it was to commute in auto from flat to office and back. The audacity of local auto drivers to strike a conversation on why I was in Bangalore when I belonged to the North, if I was learning Kannada, asking if I like anything apart from the weather, demanding more money as I was newly married and pretending not to understand a word when I would talk in Hindi or English. I had a very bad experience with the local crowd there,” she recounted.
However, she clarified that her negative experiences were not a reflection of the entire city. “My colleagues were really good. They tried to make me feel at home. I don’t say the entire state is like this. These are some of my personal anecdotes,” she added.
Many people in the comments section shared similar experiences with auto drivers in Bengaluru.
A user wrote, “Was in Bangalore back in March. Had a horrific incident with an Auto driver at midnight. The auto driver was demanding more money so we asked him to cancel the ride and we started walking and the auto driver started following us and called his friends too. We escaped somehow.”
Meanwhile, some internet users disagreed with her portrayal of Bengaluru as an unfriendly city.
One user commented, “I am from North India too, been living in Bangalore for 3 years now! Never faced any problem. I feel safe here, never been catcalled, never been robbed. Guess you’re in the wrong Bangalore. Because locals don’t treat you like you’ve mentioned.”
