Karnataka: Disgruntled Ola Electric customer allegedly sets showroom on fire, no casualties

Ola Electric showroom catches fire

A disgruntled Ola Electric customer allegedly set fire to a showroom in Kalaburagi, North Karnataka, on September 10, after his scooter was not repaired, according to police investigations.

Police sources told Moneycontrol that 26-year-old Mohammad Nadeem bought petrol and set fire to the showroom after the electric scooter he purchased on August 28 was not repaired.

“He bought an Ola scooter from the showroom 20 days ago, but it had frequent issues. The showroom staff did not address the problems despite his repeated visits. Frustrated with the issues and the staff’s negligence, he poured petrol on the showroom and set it on fire on Tuesday,” a senior police officer told Moneycontrol.

Ol Electric, in a statement on September 11, said: "There has been an incident of arson yesterday at one of our brand stores in Kalaburagi, Karnataka. The perpetrator of this violent act has been identified and an FIR has been lodged against the said individual in the concerned police station. He has been arrested and an investigation is ongoing". "Further to the FIR, we at Ola highly condemn such unlawful acts, and will take all necessary legal measures to ensure that appropriate and strict actions are taken in this matter and such incidents are not repeated", the statement adds.

Earlier, it was suspected that the fire was caused by a short circuit.

Kalaburagi Chowk police registered a case, and the accused has been taken into custody for interrogation. Around Six scooters were gutted after the incident.

No casualties were reported in the fire, sources said. Fire safety officials reached the spot and managed to extinguish the flames. The shop was closed at the time of the fire.

The incident comes two weeks after a fire broke out at an Ola showroom in Indore in Madhya Pradesh. Ola was unavailable for comments. The story will be updated when the company responds.

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At 11 am, the Ola Electric stock was trading at Rs 114.3, down a percent from the previous close.

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