Racism and persecution against minorities in India especially racism against Muslims is not something new, it’s deep-rooted in Indian society, but under the Modi-regime, things have been getting from bad to worse. In fact, if you say it’s bordering on ‘apartheid’, it won’t be far from the truth.
The latest episode in the racism Indian Muslims go through every day occurred when a Hyderabad customer on an app-based food delivery platform has demanded the restaurant that he doesn’t want a Muslim delivery person.
The screenshot of a Hyderabad user’s racist demand immediately went viral, and triggered outrage on social media, with many slamming them for bigotry.
Shaik Salauddin, head of an organization 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.
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 #SareJahanSeAchhaHindustanHamara#JaiHind #JaiTelangana pic.twitter.com/XLmz9scJpH
— Shaik Salauddin (@ShaikTgfwda) August 30, 2022
Swiggy hasn’t responded to the controversy yet.
Few have been demanding a statement from Swiggy and asked the platform to block the user, while others are advocating for the user and saying that “people can have their preferences”.
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.
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? @Swiggy @TGPWU @Connect_IFAT
— Karti P Chidambaram (@KartiPC) August 31, 2022
Isn’t it matter of personal preference?
If it would have been kept upon wish of politicians, they would have compelled Hindus even to accommodate people of such privileged community in their houses!
Dear sickulars let Hindus breath…#Swiggy #KartiChidambaram #FreedomOfChoice pic.twitter.com/C7WaXJoCUY
— Pratik (@GujjuSoul) August 31, 2022
His Food, His Choice????#Bhagyanagar #Telangana #Swiggy pic.twitter.com/qIcwYjjIFw
— Amit Kumar (@TheGoswamiAmit) August 31, 2022
Name and shame him/her. If they’re so shameless and make this request, then there is no harm in naming them
— Daler Modi????????♂️ (@DalerModi) August 30, 2022
Several such incidents have been reported in the past, where gig workers were faced with discrimination or abuse over their caste and religious status.
Earlier in 2019, a user had cancelled his order as the delivery person assigned by Zomato was from a different religion.
Reacting to the incident, Zomato stated that “Food doesn’t have a religion.” and earned praise for their stance against such divisive emotions. The company’s founder also responded that they are not sorry to lose out on business that comes in the way of their values. Elaborating on the same via a tweet, he said, “We are proud of the idea of India – and the diversity of our esteemed customers and partners.”
Much after this, in the year 2022, a customer threw across casteist slurs and refused to receive food from the delivery agent after having found that he belonged to the Scheduled Caste. A case was filed on the same grounds after the agent was thrashed and abused by the customer.
Many such cases have been coming to light in recent times and bringing about debates on the responsibility shared by businesses and users.
