The incident of a Zomato delivery executive hitting and mugging a Bengaluru model-turned-make up artist made the headlines this week after Hitesha Chandranee shared a video, in which she made some shocking allegations against the Zomato executive. After the video went viral, Zomato suspended the delivery executive who was identified as Kamaraj and then later was questioned by Electronic City police.
After Chandranee shared her experience in a video shared on social media, the Zomato executive's version was not released. The police did not release Kamaraj's statement, but now the delivery executive broke his silence on the matter.
Denying the allegations made by Chandranee, Kamaraj said that he did not hurt or attack the woman. Instead, he alleged that she was hurt by her own ring and that she charged at him.
"After I reached her apartment door, I handed her the food and I was expecting her to pay me (as she had opted for cash on delivery mode of payment)," Kamaraj told TNM, "I also apologised since the delivery was delayed due to traffic and bad roads. But she was very rude from the outset. She asked me 'Why are you late?' I replied apologetically, as there were road blocks due to ongoing civic works and there were traffic jams as well. But she kept on insisting that the order has to be delivered within 45-50 minutes. I am working on this job for more than two years and this is the first time that I have had to go through this kind of an ordeal."
The Zomato exec further alleged that the customer took the parcel and refused to pay. He claims to have pleaded for her to make the payment, but the argument got out of hand.
"She called me a 'slave' and then she started shouting 'What can you do?' In the meantime, Zomato support told me that they have cancelled the order from their end based on her request and I asked her to return the food but she did not cooperate," he said.
Kamraj decided to leave the place, but Chandranee allegedly started using expletives in Hindi, threw slippers at him and started hitting. So he tried to shield himself using his hands. In that process, she ended up hurting herself, he claims.
"When she was trying to push my hand away, she accidentally hit herself with her finger ring on the nose, which led to the bleeding. Anybody who sees her face, will understand that this wouldn't be created by a punch. And I don't wear any rings," he said.
Chandranee's viral video
Earlier, Chandranee had posted a video clip on social media, alleging that she was hit by a Zomato delivery executive on Tuesday following an argument over delayed food delivery. In the four-minute video clip posted on Instagram and Twitter, Chandranee could be seen with a bloody gash on her nose, claiming that the delivery executive had attacked her after she confronted him over the delay in the delivery of her order.
Chandranee, who has 36.4K followers on Instagram, further alleged that the delivery executive barged into her home and abused her as well. The video has garnered more than 3.8 million views.
"The Zomato delivery guy came and he was so rude. I don't usually open the door because of Shushi (her pet dog). I opened the door a little and through the small slit, I asked him to wait because I was conversing with Zomato's customer support," Chandranee said.
"I gave him a choice, saying I do not need the order so you can take it. But he refused to take the order back and he started screaming at me, saying 'Am I a slave or what? You are asking me to wait here'," she alleged.
