After one of its drivers was arrested on charges of raping a female passenger, Uber has now been banned in the Indian capital, Delhi.
The Delhi transport department has today banned Uber in the city. The blacklisting is spurred by the arrest of Shiv Kumar Yadav who was arrested yesterday after allegedly raping a 25-year-old woman on Friday night. Yadav was accused of rape in 2011, too, but charges were dropped when his accuser agreed to a settlement.
Uber has been growing rapidly in India recently, so this news is damaging for the taxi-hailing service. In a statement issued over the weekend—before the ban—Uber CEO Travis Kalanick explained:
"We will work with the government to establish clear background checks currently absent in their commercial transportation licensing programs. We will also partner closely with the groups who are leading the way on women's safety here in New Delhi and around the country and invest in technology advances to help make New Delhi a safer city for women."
What will become of Uber in India remains unclear, then. But what is clear is that Uber is increasingly getting a bad name. Maybe you should find an alternative solution? [Times of India]