‘Are you local?’: Bengaluru teen extorted by airport cab driver as police allegedly abandon him in the dark

After booking an airport taxi from Kempegowda International Airport to his PG lodging in Yelahanka, an 18-year-old boy was harassed and coerced by a cab driver in a startling event that raises questions about passenger safety in Bengaluru. While airport officials have confirmed the occurrence and promised an internal investigation, Bengaluru Police have not yet responded to the situation.

Around two in the morning on Saturday, the adolescent chose to take an airport taxi after finding it difficult to use app-based taxi booking services like Ola, Uber, and Rapido. At first, the driver accepted the fare shown on the Rapido app, which was about ₹800. However, shortly after the trip started, things took a bad turn.

Mrinali Priyadarshini, the victim's sibling, described the terrifying incident on social media, claiming that the driver purposefully took a longer route after first asking if the kid was a local. The driver abruptly stopped the car in a secluded spot, got out, and started intimidating the passenger by requesting ₹3,000 instead of the agreed-upon fee.