A District consumer forum in Delhi’s has issued notice to the food delivery company Zomato on a plea that involves the allegations of sexual harassment case by its delivery partner.
A three-member bench of Dr. Rajender Dhar, Ritu Garudia and Raj Kumar Chauhan have asked Zomato and its restaurant partner, McDonalds to appear before the Court.
The complainant has said that it was a great setback and shock to her due to the immense mental trauma and emotional breakdown she faced because of the alleged sexual assault and grave misconduct by the delivery partner engaged by Zomato without a background check.
The plea talks about the delivery executive having sexually harassed the consumer at her own home jeopardizing her safety in the late hours of night.
The complainant said that Zomato is liable for the actions of its delivery partner as it did no background check.
The plea submitted that the details of the delivery agent provided on the Zomato app and the actual agent who came to deliver the food were different.
This was found later as there was no a photo uploaded on the app which could have helped in the identification of the accused.
The complainant told the forum that she has lodged a formal complaint with the police and that a first information report (FIR) for sexual harassment was registered under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Zomato Pvt. Ltd has been sent a legal notice on account of the damages caused due to deficiency of services on its part, the complainant submitted.
The legal team of Zomato is stated to have sent an email to the complainant apologizing for the delivery partner’s alleged conduct. As per the complainant, Zomato had assured that it would assist the Greater Kailash Police authorities in the matter, as and when required.
The plea highlights the guidelines put up by Zomato on their App which are not adhered. A complainant is advised to follow up on such grievances within 12 hours, following which stringent action would be effectively taken against the delivery executive.
The plea mentions that despite the follow up by the complainant nothing was done and to the utter horror of the complainant found that the chat window was closed by stating “issue resolved.
This made the complainant move to the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission at Delhi, seeking a compensation of ₹20,00,000 (₹ 20 Lakhs) for the agony, trauma, and harassment, both physical and mental suffered by her.