A driver affiliated with the popular app-based local taxi service has been arrested following a complaint of verbal abuse and harassment made by a female passenger, who is also a practicing lawyer. The incident occurred on 3 July in Colombo.

According to lawyer Nadhiha Abbas, the complainant, the driver subjected her to threatening and obscene language after she refused to enter his vehicle, which did not match the registration details provided in her booking. Abbas had booked a ride from the VFS visa office in Colombo to the Pettah Bus Stand when the driver, identified as Mohamed Fahim, allegedly arrived in a different vehicle and called her from a private number rather than through the app.

Despite the mismatch in vehicle details, the driver is said to have forcefully initiated the ride in the app and insisted she get into his three-wheeler. When Abbas chose to leave in another vehicle, the driver reportedly followed her, hurling vulgar and abusive remarks in Tamil, including threats to obstruct her departure from Colombo.

Fearing for her safety, Abbas was directed to the Maligawatta Police Station by her new driver, where she filed an official complaint. The Officer-in-Charge took immediate action to trace and summon the suspect, who was initially registered under a different vehicle number.

On 8 July, Abbas returned to the police station to submit evidence, including call records and screenshots. During the inquiry, the driver reportedly apologised, stating he would not have acted in such a manner had he known she was a lawyer — a statement that Abbas described as deeply troubling.

“Do women in this country need to wear an attorney’s gown to be treated with basic respect?” she questioned in a public statement shared on Facebook.

Rejecting calls for a settlement, Abbas confirmed she would pursue both a criminal case under Section 345 of the Penal Code, which addresses the offence of using criminal force intending to insult the modesty of a woman, and a civil case against PickMe on the grounds of vicarious liability.

The driver was taken into custody and is expected to be produced before court.

Abbas stated that her decision to take legal action was not only for her own redress but also to ensure that other women — especially those without similar professional or social privileges — are protected under the law.

“The law exists to protect us. And I intend to use it,” she said