Zomato vs Bigotry: M.P Police initiates preventive action against customer who made 'Hindu rider' demand

The police have initiated a  preventive action against Jabalpur resident Amit Shukla who cancelled Zomato order because of the delivery man's religion. The police have issued him a warning notice which says that he has incited communal sentiments.

The Superintendent of Police of Jabalpur, Amit Singh, has said that Shukla will be under their surveillance and will be made to give an undertaking that he will not spread religious hatred.  The police will also ask him to pay a bond and will arrest him if he repeats the incident.

"We have issued a notice, it will be served to Amit Shukla. He'll be warned, if he tweets anything which is against ideals of Constitution, action will be taken; he is on surveillance," Singh said to ANI.

Amit Shukla's had tweeted on Wednesday saying that he cancelled food from the food aggregator app as it denied to change the delivery person who was a 'non-Hindu'. He also complained that he was not given a refund after cancelling the order. Zomato reacted to his tweet saying, "Food doesn’t have a religion. It is a religion."

READ | Zomato's 'Food Has No Religion' Comment Sparks Massive Social Media Debate Around Halal And Jhatka, #BoycottZomato #BoycottUberEats Trending

Zomato founder Deepinder Goyal's reaction on the issue

Zomato founder Deepinder Goyal slammed the customer, saying that the company is proud of the idea of India and the diversity of its esteemed customers and partners. He added that Zomato is not sorry to lose any business that comes in the way of the values of the company. 

The tweet and Zomato's response to it created a widespread debate over religious bigotry and food preferences.

Amit Shukla speaks to Republic

While Shukla's action was condemned by many as it was based on his prejudice against a specific religion, he stuck to his position. Speaking to Republic TV he said: "I then told Zomato to either change the executive or cancel the order. Company said that they cannot change the delivery executive and that if I cancel the order I would not get any refund."

READ | Slammed For Cancelling Zomato Order Over Non-Hindu Rider, Amit Shukla Says 'It Is About My Religious Freedom'