#MenToo: Zomato may have the allegedly assaulted female customer’s back. Indians stand resolutely behind the delivery boy

Kamaraj, the Zomato delivery executive who is facing allegations of assault by one Bengaluru based beauty influencer named Hitesha Chandranee is now grabbing the attention of the country after his gut-wrenching video of crying and pleading innocence went viral on the social media platforms. Hitesha, who had first seized her cosy share of limelight through a heavily staged video where she accused Kamaraj of punching her after late delivery is now standing on slippery ground.

In an Instagram video, seen with a bloody injury on her nose, the woman claimed that Kamaraj barged into her house and assaulted her after she questioned him over late delivery. The woman narrated that she had placed an order around 3:30 pm on March 9, which was supposed to be delivered by 4:30 pm, but she did not receive it on time. Hence, she called Zomato’s customer support and requested them to cancel the order or give her free delivery.

As usual, a woman’s testimony ignited instant response and thousands thronged in support to thrash the Zomato executive without hearing his side of the story. However, as soon as a video of Kamaraj pleading and imploring the virtual audience to hear his side of the story went viral, the perception battle flipped on its head.

In the video, Kamaraj stated that he took up this job because his father, who was a lawyer, died 15 years ago, because of which he couldn’t finish his education. He also said that he is the sole breadwinner of his family and that his mother is diabetic.

In another video, Kamaraj explained the chain of events that lead to Hitesha’s injury. The Zomato executive explained that he requested Hitesha to not complain about the late delivery as he was stranded because of the traffic. However, Hitesha started asking for free delivery on a ‘COD’ order, which ultimately Kamaraj would have had to pay from his own pocket. After Kamaraj refused, the ‘beauty influencer’ started flinging her slippers on Kamaraj, who in an act of self-defence pushed her hand away and thus Hitesha, who was wearing a ring in her hand hit her nose and she started bleeding.

Kamaraj, who was arrested by the police immediately after Hitesha’s video was only granted conditional bail after the public furore while Hitesha continues to amass Instagram followers. In the video, Kamaraj can also be seen imploring that he be allowed to go back to his job and that he just wants to put this incident behind him.

Zomato’s founder Deepinder Goyal, citing the company’s protocol said that Zomato had suspended Kamaraj for the time being but was looking after the earning and the legal expenses. One should note that Kamaraj had been working for over 26 months with Zomato and had undertaken more than 5,000 deliveries with a commendable 4.75 star rating, one of the highest in the bracket.

Meanwhile, Netizens trended the hashtag #Mentoo and showed supported to the Zomato executive who seemingly has been framed by the influencer to gain clout and instant followers.

Whatever the truth be, the entire incident has once again brought to light the issue of men being framed by women and the public trial instantly stamping the XY chromosome as the criminal. If it was not for Kamaraj’s video, the virtual audience would have sent him for the chair and the woman would have scot-free without facing any repercussions for his actions, which seem pretty shoddy at this point.