A case has been registered against Ajay Kumar, a customer in Hyderabad’s old city area who had refused to accept an order placed on food-delivery app, Swiggy, because it was delivered by a Muslim man, ANI reported. Mudassir Omar, the delivery executive concerned, had filed a complaint against Kumar over the issue. An investigation is now underway.
According to a report by Hindustan Times, police officials say that the incident happened on Monday, 21 October, but came to light on Wednesday, 23 October, after Omar, filed a complaint against Kumar.
‘Please Select Hindu Delivery Person’: Kumar on Swiggy
According to the report, Kumar, residing in Hyderabad’s Aliabad, had ordered a chicken snack from the Grand Bawarchi restaurant in the city’s Falaknuma area. In the ‘preferences’ section on the app, Kumar had written:
“Very less spicy. And, please select Hindu delivery person. All ratings will be based on this”.
When Mudassir, 32, called Kumar to verify directions to his home, Kumar allegedly got angry that his “preferences” were not kept in mind.
“He asked my name and when I revealed my identity, he was angry. He shouted at me for not honouring his preferences. He said he was rejecting the delivery, because I was a Muslim,” Mudassir to HT.
"The fact is Swiggy does not go by religion of the person. The system automatically assigned the order to me,” he said to Mumbai Mirror.
He further said that Kumar then called up the Swiggy customer care to demand that his order be cancelled and his money refunded. When told that he will be charged a 95 rupees cancellation fee for the refund, Kumar said that he “didn’t mind losing money, but would not accept the food delivered by a Muslim”.
Mudassir, a post-graduate student in science, brought up the incident to the notice of Majlis Bachao Tehreek (MBT), a political party, which advised him to filed a complaint.
“How can the food be rejected based on religion? Ironically, Grand Bawarchi restaurant belongs to a Muslim. Perhaps the customer was not aware of it,” Amzadullah Khan, President of MBT, tol HT.
(With inputs from Hindustan Times and Mumbai Mirror)
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