A 39-year-old businessman was allegedly abused and assaulted by a cab driver

BENGALURU: A 39-year-old businessman was allegedly abused and assaulted by a cab driver after he objected to the latter taking him on a different route to avoid paying a road toll.Chikkajala police arrested the driver, Mujahid Ali Mujeeb alias Mujahid Pasha (36), a resident of RT Nagar, on a complaint from Bharath Ramarao, a resident of Mysuru Road. He has been released on bail.Bharath, who arrived at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) from Delhi 20 minutes before the scheduled time on Oct 9, called the driver of the cab he had booked along with his flight ticket.Mujahid reached KIA around 2.50 pm and picked up Bharath. The driver, however, took him to Shettigere Road instead of passing through the toll plaza. “I immediately asked the driver why he took me on a different route instead of the toll road, as I had already paid the money online. The driver started shouting at me,” the complainant told TOI.“I insisted he stop the vehicle, and got out of the cab as he was very aggressive. After getting down, I clicked his photo on my mobile. The driver got down and slapped me. During the argument, he again assaulted me. Many people witnessed the assault, but nobody came to my help,” Bharath said.“I managed to call the police helpline 112. But the driver escaped before police arrived at the spot… Police collected details of the driver from me and arrested him by 10pm on the same day,” he added.A senior police officer said the driver, in his defence, claimed that the passenger shouted at him when he tried to avoid the toll. “Whatever the reason, assaulting someone is unlawful,” the officer said.A case has been registered against the driver under the BNS sections 115 (voluntarily causing hurt), 126 (wrongful restraint), 324 (mischief), 351 (criminal intimidation), and 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace).