A very distressing incident has come to light from Madhya Pradesh’s Indore district. A Zomato delivery agent was harassed over his Santa Claus costume. A group of local Hindu members allegedly forced him to remove the costume. The incident occurred while he was delivering orders on Christmas Day. The whole confrontation was captured in a video that has now gone viral.
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A video of the incident showed the Zomato delivery agent dressed as Santa Claus, sitting on his bike. The Zomato rider, identified as Arjun, was approached by Sumit Hardia during his delivery rounds. Sumit Hardia is the district convenor of the Hindu Jagran Manch.
In the video, one can see Hardia questioning Arjun about his Santa Claus costume. Hardia asks “Why “Are you delivering an order by dressing up as Santa Claus?”. He further questions “Do you ever go to people’s homes dressed as Lord Ram on Diwali?”. The Zomato driver explains that he was simply following the company’s instructions to wear the festive outfit.
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Hardia also questioned why only he is wearing the Santa Claus costume while other Zomato delivery partners are wearing normal uniforms.
The delivery partner replied that the company gave the uniform to only a selected number of people. To which Hardia says “Most of the orders have been placed by Hindus, other people don’t have that majority. You should wear saffron during the Diwali celebration and make deliveries”.
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But despite giving multiple reasons and explaining the company’s guidelines. Hardia forced Arjun to remove the costume. He was compelled to remove the red Santa jacket, pants, and cap. Hardia further interrogated the rider about his identity. He demanded to know his full name.
Now upon learning that the rider was Hindu. The person off camera then tells him in Hindi, “Arjun bhai we are Hindus. What message are you trying to send with his Santa costume? If you really want to send a message, dress up as Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad.” The confrontation did not end till the rider reluctantly removed the costume. The video ends with Hardia chanting, “Jai Shree Ram.”
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On the occasion of Christmas, Zomato dressed the riders as Santa Claus to surprise customers with gifts. However, Hardia condemned this initiative. He said “Such temptations are often used for religious conversion,” he alleged.
He also criticized the intentions of food delivery companies, questioning, “What is the mindset of the owners? What is their intention behind making agents wear such costumes?”. However, it is not confirmed whether Zomato made the costume mandatory for partners or the participation was voluntary.
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Meanwhile, the video now viral has triggered widespread debate. Social media users condemned the harassment faced by the delivery rider. Some called it “an infringement on personal and professional freedom”.
Few users criticized Zomato questioning whether the Santa Claus costumes were necessary or voluntary. However many have expressed concerns about the growing cultural intolerance in the country.
The exact location and time of the incident remains unverified. Zomato has not made any comments on the matter.
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