MUMBAI: The Matunga police recently arrested two taxi drivers for allegedly fleecing Rs 400 from a 24-year-old IIT student. Reshma Patil, a second year chemical engineering student, took the pre-paid taxi from outside Dadar station to go to Powai
when she was duped on October 8. Patil approached the Matunga police on the following day and got the two drivers—Mohammed Mulla (42) and Harcharan Singh (53)—arrested.
The incident occurred around 1.30pm when Patil got down from a long-distance train and hired the taxi. Patil said, “I returned from a conference in UP. After getting out of Dadar station I hired a taxi. The driver said the fare will be around Rs250 for Powai. Before leaving, another person sat next to the driver in the cab. The person claimed he was the driver’s friend. Mid-way the driver asked me to pay the fare. I gave a Rs 500 note which the driver took and the next moment he asked for more money. When I checked with him he said I had paid only Rs100. I asked him to return the money and gave another Rs 500 thinking I may have paid Rs100 mistakenly,” she told the police. Patil realized she was duped only after reaching her hostel in Powai.
Source: V Narayan, TNN, Times of India