Auto driver booked for duping tourists from B'desh

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: City police booked an auto-rickshaw driver for allegedly cheating tourists, a Bangladeshi blogger and his girlfriend, of Rs 900 while ferrying them to Bengaluru Palace.

The action was taken after the blogger's camera caught the driver’s trickery and the videoclip was shared on social media, forcing the Bengaluru cops to take action.

A vlogger from Kolkata, Mrityunjay Sardar, on September 5, shared the video of the same on X (previously Twitter) and tagged the Bengaluru Police on it.

"Bangladeshi blogger and his girlfriend were traveling to ‘Bengaluru Palace’. A local auto driver cheated them. This is how we treat foreigners? Please take action,” he posted on X.

It was revealed that when the Bangladeshi tourist couple hired an auto-rickshaw and reached their destination, the fare was Rs 320. The blogger pulled out a Rs 500 note from his wallet and handed it over to the auto driver.

In the video, the driver was seen slipping the note into his sleeves and pulling a Rs 100 note to show the blogger, pretending that it was what he gave him. The confused blogger gives the auto driver another Rs 500 note assuming that he was at fault.

However, while editing the video, the blogger realised that he had been duped by the driver. It was revealed later that the driver had a Rs 100 note hidden in his other hand even before the blogger had taken his wallet out.

The Bengaluru Police nabbed the auto driver and shared an update on X stating, “The auto driver has been handed over to Sadashivnagar law and order police station for further action.”

Netizens poured in their sympathy for the Bangladeshi tourists and condemned the driver’s act.