A Foodpanda delivery rider has been accused of harassing a female student of a private university in Dhaka’s Badda area via text messages shortly after delivering her food.
The victim filed a general diary (GD) with Badda Police Station in this regard on Saturday night, Kazi Md Nasirul Amin, officer-in-charge of Badda Police Station, told The Daily Star.
“We are taking further steps in this regard,” the police official added.
Talking to this newspaper, the student said she placed an order through the platform on August 3. Later that night, she began receiving calls and offensive texts on WhatsApp from an unknown number.
"At first, I didn't recognise the person. But at one point, the man admitted that he was the rider who had delivered my food," she told The Daily Star.
According to the victim, the accused was identified as Kawsar Hossain, 24.
According to the GD, the caller repeatedly contacted her without identifying himself, sent inappropriate WhatsApp messages, and behaved indecently. Whenever she called the number back, he refused to answer and disconnected the calls.
The victim said she and her family felt threatened following the incident which was why she was forced to file a GD on August 4.
The following day, she shared her experience in a Facebook post, saying the rider knew she was alone at home. She also posted screenshots of their conversation to warn other women.
In another Facebook post on August 6, the student alleged that after speaking publicly about the incident, she began receiving rape threats from several fake Facebook accounts.
Responding to queries, Foodpanda's public relations team said in a written statement that the rider was removed from the platform immediately after an internal review.
"The rider has already been terminated from the Foodpanda platform following an immediate review of the incident. We deeply regret the distress caused to the customer by the rider's unacceptable behaviour. Foodpanda will assist with any police investigation into the matter."
The company added, "Customer safety is our highest priority. All riders undergo mandatory training during onboarding on our professional standards and strict zero-tolerance policy against harassment or intimidation."
