Indian man cancels cab ride because driver was Muslim

MUMBAI: An Indian man, Abhishek Mishra, proudly cancelled an Ola cab's ride because the driver happened to be a Muslim, and blatantly posted his discriminatory attitude on social media with an aim to get applause from those countrymen who follow his religion in the same way as he does.

As per details,  Abhishek Mishra, who claimed  to be a Hindutva thinker tweeted that he cancelled the cab because he did not want to give money to "Jihadi People". He enclosed a screenshot of the cancellation, which showed the driver's name Masood Alam. His discriminatory tweet sparked strong reactions.

Responding to Mishra’s tweet, Ola cabs, an Indian origin online transportation network company, said; "Ola, like our country, is a secular platform, and we don't discriminate our driver partners or customers basis their caste, religion, gender or creed. We urge all our customers and driver partners to treat each other with respect at all times."

Meanwhile, many decent people on Twitter asked Ola to ban Abhishek Mishra. Others said the lack of reaction from the taxicab aggregator was a message in itself.

Abhishek Mishra reportedly  has  some influential government figures among his followers on Twitter, including Indian defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman, petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan and minister of culture Mahesh Sharma.

While, Abhishek Mishra's Facebook profile says he works as an IT professional in Lucknow, claims he is an active member of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal -- both affiliates of the BJP's ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh -- and "holds responsibility" of the IT cell of the VHP.

It is really disappointing for many that the government of India has not condemned any such abhorring acts against minority which broadly negate its claim to be a secular state, widening communal differences.