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India taxi rape allegation: Uber booking service banned in Delhi | India taxi rape allegation: Uber booking service banned in Delhi |
(35 minutes later) | |
Authorities in the Indian capital, Delhi, have banned international taxi-booking service Uber after a driver allegedly raped a female passenger. | Authorities in the Indian capital, Delhi, have banned international taxi-booking service Uber after a driver allegedly raped a female passenger. |
A transport department official said the company had been "blacklisted" for "misleading customers". | A transport department official said the company had been "blacklisted" for "misleading customers". |
The 26-year-old woman used the smartphone app to take a taxi home on Friday but says she was taken to a secluded area and raped. | The 26-year-old woman used the smartphone app to take a taxi home on Friday but says she was taken to a secluded area and raped. |
The driver has been remanded in custody for three days. | The driver has been remanded in custody for three days. |
He was arrested on Sunday and appeared in court on Monday afternoon. | He was arrested on Sunday and appeared in court on Monday afternoon. |
Some who had gathered outside the court tried to attack him as he was brought out, but police rushed him to a waiting van and took him away. | Some who had gathered outside the court tried to attack him as he was brought out, but police rushed him to a waiting van and took him away. |
Police say will charge him with raping the finance company employee on Friday night when she used the taxi to take her home from a restaurant. | Police say will charge him with raping the finance company employee on Friday night when she used the taxi to take her home from a restaurant. |
Uber, which is growing in popularity in India, has been accused of failing to conduct adequate checks on its drivers. | Uber, which is growing in popularity in India, has been accused of failing to conduct adequate checks on its drivers. |
"(The) Transport Department has banned all activities relating to providing any transport service by the www.Uber.com with immediate effect," news agency AFP reported, quoting from a government statement. | "(The) Transport Department has banned all activities relating to providing any transport service by the www.Uber.com with immediate effect," news agency AFP reported, quoting from a government statement. |
The ban means any Uber taxi in Delhi will now attract a fine or even be impounded, officials say. | The ban means any Uber taxi in Delhi will now attract a fine or even be impounded, officials say. |
The company is still accepting bookings on its app and it is not yet clear how the ban will be enforced since Uber taxis do not carry any visible branding. | The company is still accepting bookings on its app and it is not yet clear how the ban will be enforced since Uber taxis do not carry any visible branding. |
Before the ban was announced, Uber described the incident as "horrific" and said it would do everything "to help bring this perpetrator to justice". | Before the ban was announced, Uber described the incident as "horrific" and said it would do everything "to help bring this perpetrator to justice". |
"Our entire team's hearts go out to the victim of this despicable crime. We will do everything, I repeat, everything to help bring this perpetrator to justice and to support the victim and her family in her recovery," Uber CEO Travis Kalanick said in a statement. | "Our entire team's hearts go out to the victim of this despicable crime. We will do everything, I repeat, everything to help bring this perpetrator to justice and to support the victim and her family in her recovery," Uber CEO Travis Kalanick said in a statement. |
He said Uber would "work with the government to establish clear background checks currently absent in their commercial transportation licensing programs". | He said Uber would "work with the government to establish clear background checks currently absent in their commercial transportation licensing programs". |
Using Delhi taxis: Shilpa Kannan, BBC News, Delhi | |
I have been using taxis in Delhi for the past 14 years. The main option initially were black-and-yellow, smelly and dilapidated Ambassadors run by the local taxi rank and I used them regularly, night and day. | |
That was until a few years ago when private "radio taxi" services were introduced which promised swanky new cars and better trained, more polite drivers. | |
That's when many people, including me, switched to them even though they were more expensive. | |
I began to use Easy Cabs, Mega Cabs and Meru. I would call into their call centres and book a pick up and they almost always delivered. | |
These cars are all fitted with GPS which means they can be tracked as they journey through the city's streets. | |
Safety is an issue in Delhi and like most women in the city, when I get into a taxi alone, I call home and give the car licence plate number and an estimated arrival time. | |
Meru, one of the largest radio taxi operators in India with nearly 6,000 cars, also introduced a "trip tracker facility" where an automatic messaging system sends regular updates about your trip to a contact of yours. | |
But as many of the Meru, Mega and Easy cabs have been run down from overuse, in recent months, I began using the newer services like Ola, TaxiForSure and Uber which connect customers with drivers through their apps and charge a commission on every ride. | |
After the weekend incident, I have decided to go back to my local taxi rank - I'm more comfortable with the smelly Ambassador with the driver who has been driving it for decades. | |
Uber, which is based in San-Francisco, said safety was paramount and that it had GPS traces of all journeys. | Uber, which is based in San-Francisco, said safety was paramount and that it had GPS traces of all journeys. |
Established in 2009, the company operates in dozens of countries and recently attracted investment which values it at $40bn (£25bn). | Established in 2009, the company operates in dozens of countries and recently attracted investment which values it at $40bn (£25bn). |
The latest allegation of rape has again put the spotlight on the issue of sexual violence against Indian women, following a series of recent incidents. | The latest allegation of rape has again put the spotlight on the issue of sexual violence against Indian women, following a series of recent incidents. |
It comes days before the second anniversary of the gang rape and murder of a student on a bus in Delhi, which prompted global outrage and a tightening of the laws on sexual violence. | It comes days before the second anniversary of the gang rape and murder of a student on a bus in Delhi, which prompted global outrage and a tightening of the laws on sexual violence. |
Correspondents, however, say tougher laws have failed to bring down the number of rape cases - according to the National Crime Records Bureau, India recorded 33,707 cases in 2013 as against 24,923 in 2012. | Correspondents, however, say tougher laws have failed to bring down the number of rape cases - according to the National Crime Records Bureau, India recorded 33,707 cases in 2013 as against 24,923 in 2012. |
And many in India are taking to social media to express their anger about the latest incident with #DelhiShamedAgain trending heavily on Twitter. | And many in India are taking to social media to express their anger about the latest incident with #DelhiShamedAgain trending heavily on Twitter. |