THE INDIAN CAPITAL of New Delhi has entirely banned the Uber taxi service from the city, after a woman was allegedly raped by one of its drivers.
Transport official Satish Mathur made the announcement as the 32-year-old suspect appeared in a New Delhi court today.
Police say they expect the court to formally charge Shiv Kumar Yadav with raping the finance company employee.
He was hired to ferry her home from a dinner engagement on Friday night.
Press Trust of India (PRI) reports that the 26-year-old woman had fallen asleep during the journey home.
When she woke up, she found the car parked in a secluded place. The driver then allegedly threatened her and raped her.
The CEO of San Francisco-based Uber, Travis Kalanick, said the company would do “everything to bring the perpetrator to justice and to support the victim and her family in her recovery.”
He also sought to pass some of the blame on to officials, saying the company would work with the government to establish clear background checks that are “currently absent in their commercial transportation licensing programs.”
The case, almost two years after a young woman was fatally gang raped on a bus in the capital, has renewed national anger over sexual violence in India and demands for more effort to ensure women’s safety.
The government rushed through legislation last year to double prison terms for rape to 20 years and to criminalize voyeurism, stalking and the trafficking of women.
But activists say much more needs to be done, including better educating youths and adding basic infrastructure, such as street lights and bathrooms to prevent women from getting caught out alone in the dark.
The New Delhi ban is a blow for Uber, which has courted acclamation and controversy around the world with a service based on hailing taxis from a smartphone app.
It has faced restrictions in other countries after licensed taxi operators claimed the service was competing unfairly.
Police told Press Trust of India they were working to verify Yadav’s claims that he had been acquitted of rape charges in 2011, after spending seven months in jail.
Contains reporting by the Associated Press.
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