*Names have been changed due to anonymity What happened: A part-time employee and student named Anousha* booked an inDrive bike in Islamabad’s I-8 Markaz area which turned out to be ‘an extremely traumatising’ experience for her. The rider, named Mohammad, dodged Faisal Avenue exits twice and that’s when Anousha* asked him where is he taking her, “Kahan jana chahti ho,” is what the biker replied.
TW: Harassment
Had an extremely traumatising experience and luckily escaped it. Booked an @inDrive bike around 2:59 pm from I-8 markaz to home. Everything was going fine. When we reached the point where he was supposed to turn to roundabout to exit Faisal Avenue; he skipped it. pic.twitter.com/Gv1VEsGPE1
— venting wicca (@ventingwicca) November 17, 2022
Details: Anousha* pushed the rider and got off from the moving bike, “He started making lame arguments by showing me google map upside down kay dekhain yeh rast seedha shakarpariyan ki taraf ja raha hai,” she added. How she escaped: Anousha* then approached a bike rider who was in the area and witnessed the whole incident, “I requested the second bike rider to drop me off in I-8 markaz.” It should be noted that he was also riding the bike illegally as he was wearing a green helmet without registration. Anousha* got off near her area’s park and sat there for a while to regain her senses, “I, then, booked a car ride from there to get home.” inDrive’s underwhelming response: On the other hand, inDrive didn’t handle the situation like they should’ve. Anousha* got a call out of the blue from their complaint department while she was still paranoid about the whole situation, “inDrive, please teach your representative the basics of psychological first aid. The female representative directly called on my number. The appropriate way is to drop a text first.” Anousha* told her the same thing to which the employee apologised and insisted she had no idea. Overall, Anousha* is not satisfied with their review action as she thinks their reaction was pretty ‘casual.’
So, this @indrive female representative called me and ensured that they took an action. Please teach your representative basic of psychological first aid. She directly called on my number I was paranoid and did not pick on first call. The appropriate way is to drop a text first. https://t.co/SMpUcyAmTB
— venting wicca (@ventingwicca) November 17, 2022
Victim-blaming: What made it worse was Twitter uses victim-blaming Anousha* for choosing a bike ride as sofi_mir replied to her, “A bike ride? Sorry to say but he already took a hint ke bike pe baith ri hai to i am privileged to do nasty stuff..” Anousha* told her that sometimes even cars have child locks which means getting trapped completely. Since Anousha was on a bike, she was able to hop off in time. Another user, ABilal38973241 wrote, “Jab apne mulk ka pata hai to kis na kaha apko ke bike ride kero like seriously??”
What you need to know: Speaking to Propergaanda, Anousha shared that she is an independent woman who earns for herself and has to be rather economical, “Which is why I use bike rides more often as they demand less fare.” She added that inDrive should make their decision public so their users know they put their customer’s safety first, but so far, there has been no development.