As Zomato executives protest against pork, beef delivery in Howrah, doubts raised on charges against app

Following on the heels of the recent incident, where a customer declined to receive an order being delivered by a non-Hindu rider in Jabalpur , food aggregator Zomato is courting yet another controversy, this time in West Bengal’s Howrah, where a group of striking executives have been protesting against delivering beef and pork, on grounds of hurt religious sentiments. “The company is not listening to our demands and forcing us to deliver beef and pork against our will. Hindus have a problem delivering beef, while Muslims do not want to deliver pork,” Zomato rider Mausin Akhtar told news agency ANI. “We have heard that in a few days we will have to deliver pork, which we have also refused to do. We are not ready to deliver such things on any condition, as we are being forced into it. The company has also rolled back our payout. We have been on strike for a week now,” he adds. While Twitterverse and social media are divided on the issue, with some supporting the aggrieved employees, and others calling the protest “staged”, a Zomato search yields little to no results for restaurants delivering pork or beef in Howrah. [caption id=“attachment_7152661” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Search results on Zomato’s app for beef and pork delivery in Howrah.[/caption] “The protests may have been triggered by the Jabalpur incident because there are no restaurants on Zomato delivering pork or beef (in Howrah). In any case, it’s only been about six to seven months since Zomato has been delivering here (in Howrah). The delivery rates here are low, and so are the number of restaurants to choose from,” says a resident of the city, on conditions of anonymity. “But it’s only three or four days ago that I overheard a couple of Zomato delivery partners at a restaurant near my house talking about how they aren’t willing to deliver pork or beef dishes. In any case, the Kolkata riders are not allowed to cross the Vidyasagar Setu over to Howrah with any food. It is Kolkata-based restaurants who keep pork and beef, and Zomato can’t deliver that to Howrah,” he adds. Not only does Zomato’s delivery service mostly operate within a limited radius surrounding the state secretariat, Nabanna, users also mention how the food aggregator stops serving after a certain hour in Howrah. “Zomato anyway does not deliver food in Howrah after 10 pm. There are a few places serving pork momos and other pork items in Howrah, and Zomato probably delivers from those. But there’s definitely no beef dishes being delivered by Zomato in Howrah. I have checked. There aren’t many beef-serving restaurants here in the first place,” says Howrah’s Shantanu Polley, a Zomato subscriber. While Akhtar demanded that the company stops beef and pork delivery immediately, and urged it to revise their salaries on behalf of striking fellow-employees, another rider mentioned his disappointment with the organisation “playing with religious sentiments”. “We, the Hindus, were asked to deliver beef, while in the days to come, our Muslims brothers will be asked to deliver pork. This is not acceptable,” the employee told ANI. [caption id=“attachment_7152601” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Zomato executives protest in Howrah. Also pictured on extreme right: Local BJP leader Sanjiv Kumar Shukla. Twitter@ANI.[/caption] Local BJP leader, Sanjiv Kumar Shukla, corroborates the claims. “Yes, some of these Zomato boys, who have been protesting since 3 August, came to me after their voices were not heard till around 9 August. They came to me seeking help, and I assisted their cause by drawing media attention. When these young men told Zomato that they will not deliver pork and beef dishes, the company threatened to fire them,” he says. Shukla mentions that he participated in the protests in the capacity of a “social worker”, and that “the BJP has nothing to do with this issue”. “Who else but common people to stand up for the rights of fellow commoners?” he asks, mentioning how the number of protestors has increased from a mere few to nearly 80, including citizens supporting the cause. “These Zomato boys also told me that on Sunday evening the Assistant Commissioner of Police at Golabari police station has asked them to select five or six representatives. This group will state their problems to some top officer from Zomato, who, according to what the police told them, will be visiting Howrah around the 16th of this month,” Shukla informs. On being asked as to which restaurants in Howrah are being charged with selling pork and beef through Zomato, Shukla mentions a “Real Restaurant” in Salkia, even though said restaurant isn’t listed on the platform. “But we have news that they plan to start delivering through Zomato after 15 August,” he mentions. The restaurant, however, dismissed such claims on being contacted. “Yes, we do serve beef biryani, but we have no such plans of partnering with Zomato any time soon,” the two-decade-old establishment says. Zomato received resounding support for taking a stance in favour of its employees, with founder Deepinder Goyal tweeting “Food has no religion. It is a religion”, when the previous round of controversies broke out earlier last month. This time, on reaching out to Zomato for a comment on measures being taken to address the issue, Firstpost was redirected to the company’s public statement, which says: “In a country as diverse as India, it is impossible to ensure that vegetarian and non-vegetarian preferences are factored into delivery logistics. Delivery partners are unequivocally made to understand the practical nature of the job as they choose to enter the workforce. All our partners understand this fully. There is a small group of partners in Howrah who have raised concerns and we are looking to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.”

Zomato: Delivery partners are unequivocally made to understand the practical nature of the job as they choose to enter the workforce. All our partners understand this fully. There is a small group of partners in Howrah who've raised concerns & we're looking to resolve the issue https://t.co/JSspjdxlLp

— ANI (@ANI) August 11, 2019

While some anguished employees in Howrah continue to stage protests and stop delivery of food altogether, their colleagues have also been urged to join them in their cause. However, app-users mentioned spotting Zomato riders in Howrah even on Monday morning. “I can see a few restaurants delivering on Zomato even now,” says Poulami Maji, a resident of Howrah.