Pune techie almost loses finger after cabbie bites him dispute over fare

PUNE: An IT professional's one of the fingers of left hand was partially severed on Monday afternoon when a cab driver allegedly bit it and another finger following a row over fare before a ride from Hinjewadi to Nana Peth.

The 42-year-old IT professional, working in an IT firm in Phase I of Hinjewadi IT Park, booked a Rapido cab to go to his home in Nana Peth after his shift ended. The cab driver allegedly refused to accept the fare shown on the app and demanded payment by "meter", leading to an argument.

As the dispute escalated, the driver allegedly assaulted the victim and bit two fingers of his left hand around 3.40pm. According to the police complaint, one of his fingers was partially severed in the bite. The IT professional was later admitted to a hospital in Pune for treatment.

Assistant inspector Sandeep Vanganekar of the Hinjewadi police, the investigating officer, said the accused driver was arrested. "The dispute began even before the ride started, as the driver insisted that the fare would be as per the ‘meter'. The victim refused, following which the argument escalated," he said.

The victim approached the police the next day after receiving treatment, following which an FIR was registered. "The accused was produced before the court after he was arrested," Vanganekar said.

A case has been registered at the Hinjewadi police station under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including those related to voluntarily causing grievous hurt and intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of peace. An official statement from Rapido was awaited till going to press.

Cab users alleged most of the cab drivers refused to accept fares shown on cab booking applications and insisted on payment as per the "meter". Tanvi Shaikh, a resident of Kondhwa, said, "I booked a cab on Uber around 2am from the MSRTC stand in Wakdewadi to Kondhwa last week. The driver told me to pay by meter before starting the ride instead of accepting the fare shown on the app. I cancelled it and booked another on Ola, but had the same experience. Eventually, I took an autorickshaw, which anyway plied by the meter."