‘My Father Has Stage 4 Cancer’: Pune Woman Slams Ola After Parents Forced Out of Cab
Pune, 20th May 2025: A woman from Wagholi has accused an Ola cab driver of forcibly ejecting her elderly parents, including her father who is battling stage 4 cancer, after they requested that the car’s air conditioning be turned on during a ride near Ruby Hall Clinic last week.
Manpreet Kaur, 35, said the incident occurred around 12:30 PM on Friday, May 16, shortly after she booked a ride for her parents from the hospital to their home. Her father had just undergone radiation therapy at the clinic on Sassoon Road and was reportedly feeling extremely weak.
“My father was exhausted after his treatment and asked the driver to switch on the AC,” said Manpreet. “Instead of complying, the driver allegedly refused and got into an argument with my parents. Within minutes, he abruptly ended the ride and asked them to get out of the cab.”
She added that the driver demanded payment for the brief journey despite dropping them midway. “My parents refused to pay. He became aggressive and drove off, leaving my father—who had medical tubes in his nose—and my mother to walk back to the hospital. I had to book them another cab from there,” Manpreet explained.
Manpreet took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to raise the issue, tagging Ola in her post. “I expected a response at least on social media, but there was none. Later that day, I filed a formal complaint using the Ola app. The response said my complaint had been escalated, but no one has reached out yet,” she said.
As of Monday evening, there had been no official response from Ola to her grievance.
The incident has sparked renewed concerns about the behavior of app-based taxi drivers in Pune. In recent months, several commuters have voiced frustration about poor service standards, aggressive driver behavior, and app glitches with major ride-hailing platforms.
Earlier this month, the Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO) urged citizens to report any such incidents directly to the transport department. Complaints can be emailed to [email protected], according to officials.
