Ola scooter catches fire outside Bengaluru showroom, sparks social media outcry

In a widely circulated video, an Ola scooter is seen engulfed in flames just outside the company’s showroom in Bengaluru, attracting a crowd of onlookers capturing the scene on their phones. The incident reportedly took place near Jayadev Hospital in the BTM Layout area, with the video shared on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) by Congress spokesperson Lavanya Ballal Jain.

Just another fiery day in the life of ola scooter ownerpic.twitter.com/sKADZBZwRB

— Lavanya Ballal Jain (@LavanyaBallal) October 24, 2024

The incident has amplified ongoing criticism against Ola for what many claim to be recurring issues with the scooter's quality and service standards. Social media erupted with reactions, with some users humorously dubbing the incident Ola’s “Diwali feature,” while others questioned the company's safety measures. “That’s Ola’s corporate Diwali party,” joked one user, while another asked if Ola was planning for a “Diwali Dhamaka.”

This fire incident comes amid a larger wave of criticism following a show-cause notice issued to Ola Electric by the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) on October 7. The notice addressed thousands of complaints from customers over unresolved service issues at Ola service centers. In response, Ola Electric’s CFO Harish Abhichandani reported that 99.1% of the 10,644 complaints have been successfully resolved to customer satisfaction, emphasizing the company's commitment to customer service.

Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare stated, “The CCPA is investigating a significant volume of complaints related to Ola Electric’s service shortcomings. We expect prompt resolutions to alleviate customer concerns.”

Ola’s CEO Bhavish Aggarwal recently sparked a public debate with comedian Kunal Kamra, who criticized Ola’s service by sharing images of scooters amassed outside a service center. Aggarwal responded by challenging Kamra to “come help” or “sit quiet” and dismissed him as a “failed comedian.” Kamra countered by resharing posts from customers alleging that Ola has deployed bouncers at some service centers.