Days after the Zomato attack incident, the accused spoke about his side of the story on the 11th of March.
Recently, a Bengaluru based makeup artist and social media influencer Chandranee Hitesha, shared an Instagram video claiming an attack by a zomato delivery man.
Ms. Hitesha shared the video through her Instagram account as well as Twitter. In her video she said that a Zomato delivery man punched her nose and ran away after a heated argument over delivery timing. The video soon gained a lot of attention with millions of views and went viral.
Responding to her complaint and the video, Zomato also shared an apology for the incident and promised necessary action. The apology read, “Hey Hitesha, thank you for speaking to us, we can assure you this is not the experience our delivery universe stands for. Our local representative shall be in touch with you shortly to help you with the police investigation. Along with assistance on the medical care required. We can’t emphasise how sorry we are, rest assured we’ll take necessary actions to prevent such incidents from happening in the future.”
Soon, the Karnataka Police became involved in the matter and Joshi Srinath, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of South East Bengaluru arrested the delivery man identified as Mr. Kamaraj.
However, Kamaraj denied the allegations and said it was Ms. Hitesha who started abusing him. In his statement, Kamaraj said, “After I reached her apartment door, I handed her the food and I was expecting her to pay me (as she had opted for cash on delivery mode of payment.) I also apologised since the delivery was delayed due to traffic and bad roads. But she was very rude from the outset. She asked me ‘Why are you late?’ I replied apologetically, as there were road blocks due to ongoing civic works and there were traffic jams as well. But she kept on insisting that the order has to be delivered within 45-50 minutes . I am working on this job for more than two years and this is the first time that I have had to go through this kind of an ordeal (sic.)”
Kamaraj further explained about the bleeding nose of her and said, “For my safety, when she was hitting me, I tried to use my hand to shield her blows. At this point, when she was trying to push my hand away, she accidentally hit herself with her finger ring on the nose, which led to the bleeding. Anybody who sees her face, will understand that this wouldn’t be created by a punch. And I don’t wear any rings.”
After listening to both side stories, Deepinder Goyal, the founder of the food delivery app Zomato, took to Twitter and shared his stand.
Mr. Goyal said, “We are in constant touch with Hitesha covering her medical expenses and helping her with the proceedings. We are also in touch with Kamraj, extending all possible support to make sure both sides of the story come to light and that due process is followed in the spirit of fairness.
The matter became a concern for the safety of both women and men. The matter also divided netizens based on their opinions. While half of them believe Hitesha and expressed anger at the delivery man and the app for their services, the other half are with Kamaraj, alleging Hitesha’s move to be for attention and fame.
As of now, Hitesha Chandranee is undergoing treatment and Kamaraj is on temporary suspension.
The Karnataka Police filed a First Information Report (FIR) against him and are investigating the matter.
Stay tuned for further updates.
