New Delhi: A cab driver was arrested for allegedly engaging in a lewd act while driving a 22-year-old woman in north Delhi’s Maurice Nagar. The accused was identified as Lum Shankar, a resident of Rana Pratap Bagh. The victim, who is originally from Bengaluru pursuing her masters in Delhi, said the incident occurred on Sept 8 when she booked a cab to her college. “The cab arrived at her residence at 9.30am. She sat in the front seat due to motion sickness. During the journey, the cab driver began talking to her, but she could not comprehend what he said as she didn’t understand Hindi well,” police said. The driver then allegedly touched her thighs and began masturbating, which frightened her. As they passed a women’s police picket at Kranti Chowk, she immediately asked the driver to stop the cab. She exited the vehicle, and the driver fled the scene. At the picket, the woman narrated the incident to the cops. “She filed a complaint at Maurice Nagar police station, based on which a molestation case was registered. The driver was apprehended the same day, and the cab seized,” police said. Shankar, who has been a driver for 16 years, is married and has three children. A similar incident was reported in 2022 involving a British national. The woman and her friend booked a cab from the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) to a hotel in south Delhi. Midway through the journey, she noticed the driver’s indecent behaviour and objected. The duo reported the matter to cops and the driver was later arrested.
