The driver of cab aggregator Uber was recently arrested for threatening actress Manava Naik and trying to speed away with her when asked to stop. The driver, Mohammed Murad, was cornered by two motorbike-borne men and an autorickshaw driver who came to Manava’s rescue upon hearing her cries for help.
It all started when Manava objected to the driver talking on his phone while driving her home on the night of 15th October. Meanwhile, a traffic cop caught him jumping a signal and clicked his picture doing so. The cabbie lost his cool when the actress requested the traffic policeman to let them go as she was getting late and since he had already clicked his photograph. He started shouting at Manava for asking the police to let them go as he would have had to pay the Rs. 500 fine. When Manava asked him to take the cab to a police station, he stopped the vehicle at a dark, isolated spot, then sped. Going further, he once again tried to stop the cab, and threatened Manava. That’s when she called the Uber safety helpline number. Upon this, the cabbie once again sped the cab and he began to call someone from his phone. Manava started yelling for help, which is when the three persons cornered the cabbie.
Manava Naik shared her ordeal on social media. The police assured her with a reply to her post. “Manava ji, we have taken serious cognisance of this grave incident. DCP (zone 8) D.S. Swamy is working on it and will book the culprit as soon as possible,” he replied. The police nabbed Murad after locating the cab owner. An Uber official said, “What has been described is deplorable. Our team has connected with the rider to provide support, and the driver’s access to the Uber app has been removed.”