‘What happened in Munnar is a negative incident, issue has to be discussed,’ says Riyas

KASARGOD: Tourism Minister P A Muhammed Riyas termed as ‘unfortunate’ on the incident where a woman from Mumbai alleged that she was harassed in Munnar. The minister said she came to Kerala from Mumbai with big hopes and that Kerala is the safest tourist destination in India. The minister responded when came to attend an event in Kasaragod.

'What happened in Munnar is a negative incident. The number of tourists coming to Kerala should not drop due to such incidents. Kerala is the most peaceful state. A tourist from another state should not have had such an experience there. The issue needs to be discussed with other ministers and taxi organizations,' the minister clarified.

A woman named Janvi, an assistant professor, shared on social media the unfortunate experience she faced from taxi drivers and the police while traveling in an online taxi during her visit to Munnar. The woman is an assistant professor in Mumbai. Janvi and her friends reached Munnar after visiting Kochi and Alappuzha in a taxi booked online. However, in the meantime, a group stopped them, saying that there is a ban on online taxis in Munnar and that there is a court order in this regard.

Their stand was that they would only be allowed to travel in local taxis. The woman then sought help from the police. However, the woman said in the video that the police who reached the spot also took the same stand. With this, Janvi had revealed in the video that she had to travel in another taxi and ended the visit and returned.

Meantime, two police officers have been suspended in connection with the incident. Action has been taken against assistant sub inspector Saju Poulose and grade sub inspector George Kurian of Munnar Police Station. The district police chief took action after finding negligence.