Assault on Uber driver: IG P Vijayan orders detailed probe

KOCHI: Amidst growing criticisms against the police for registering a case against the Uber taxi driver who was assaulted by three women in the city last week, Kochi Range IG P Vijayan on Tuesday ordered an inquiry into the entire episode.“The Assistant Commissioner of Police, Special Branch, has been directed to file a detailed report on the incident. The probe will check whether there was any lapse in registering case against the accused women and the alleged denial of justice to the victim by registering a case against him,” Vijayan said.

Online taxi driver Shefeeq was assaulted by three women last Wednesday. The women, who had booked the online cab under Uber’s share cab facility ‘uberPOOL’, reportedly demanded the other passenger to get out of the vehicle, though the driver told them they had booked ‘uberPOOL’ and not a regular cab. 
The Marad police arrested Clara Shibin, Sheeja Afsal, and Angel Mary in connection with the incident and later released them on bail on the same day after slapping minor charges. 

On Monday, the Marad police registered a case against Shefeeq on various charges, including section 354  of IPC, based on the complaint lodged by the women. The police action of registering a case against the victim drew severe criticism from various quarters. According to the police officers, lodging an FIR against the driver was just a formality.As part of the inquiry, the officers will examine the CCTV footage and the victim’s medical certificate, besides collecting statements of the eyewitnesses to ascertain whether the women were let off by slapping only minor charges.