Clarion India
NEW DELHI – A communal request by a customer in Hyderabad on food delivery platform named Swiggy has drawn an outrage on social media, with many slamming them for bigotry. In their order to the restaurant through the platform, the customer said they don’t want a Muslim delivery person.
Shaik Salauddin, head of an organisation of workers employed in the gig economy, shared the screenshot of the Swiggy order and urged the platform to take a stand against it. We are here to deliver food to one and all, be it Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, he said.
“Dear @Swiggy please take a stand against such a bigoted request. We (Delivery workers) are here to deliver food to one and all, be it Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh @Swiggy @TGPWU Mazhab Nahi Sikhata Aapas Mein Bair Rakhna,” he tweeted.
Swiggy hasn’t responded to the controversy yet.
Among those who expressed outrage was Karti Chidambaram, Congress MP from Karnataka.
“Platform companies cannot sit back and watch as gig workers face such blatant bigotry in the name of religion. What action will such companies take to safeguard the rights of gig workers?” he tweeted while tagging Swiggy.
In 2019, app-based food delivery service Zomato had earned praise online for taking a stand after a man cancelled his order because the delivery person was from a different religion.
“Food doesn’t have a religion. It is a religion,” the company had tweeted in response to the customer’s request for change of the rider.
Backing Zomato’s stand, the company’s founder tweeted from his personal account that they aren’t sorry to lose any business that comes in the way of their values.
“We are proud of the idea of India – and the diversity of our esteemed customers and partners. We aren’t sorry to lose any business that comes in the way of our values,” he had tweeted.
There have been several public criticism about the role of app-based platforms and how far their responsibilities extend. Several commentators feel such platforms can’t abdicate responsibilities by dissociating themselves from businesses and users, claiming only to be an intermediary.
