MEAWW.COM / NEWS / CRIME & JUSTICE

Who is Subhakar Khadka? California driver exposes banned anti-masker who coughed and hurled racial slurs at him

The woman who attacked Khadka posted a video on Instagram and is heard saying, '75% of the people she knows would have smacked him'

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA: An Asian Uber driver, on Sunday, March 7, was assaulted by a woman — who was riding with two other women — when he refused to provide them the service for not having their masks on. The shocking video shows the woman in question hurls abuses at the 32-year-old man, who has been identified as Subhakar Khadka. The woman has been banned from riding in Uber and Lyft. 

The incident occurred around 12.45 pm at San Bruno Ave in San Francisco. The police said one of the three women, other than the one who is seen attacking Khadka, reportedly sprayed pepper spray into the vehicle after stepping out. The victim, in a statement to San Francisco CBS local, has claimed that the woman displayed aggressive behavior towards him after realizing he wasn't "one of them", owing to his race. 

 READ MORE 

Uber to ban passengers if drivers give them bad ratings as company updates guidelines

New Jersey Uber driver banned for kicking lesbian couple out after they shared a kiss on the cheek

Who is Subhakar Khadka?

Khadka reportedly came to the US eight years ago. He uses his earning to support his family in India. On Sunday, March 7, he had just picked the three women from the Bay area before the shocking incident unfolded. The anti-masker began abusing him when he asked them to wear their masks. He reportedly even told them he would make a stop at the gas station, from where they could pick one. 

However, the woman was triggered by his refusal to drive them sans mask and launched a verbal attack on him. At one point in the video, she leans forward and snatches his phone away, before yelling "are you stupid?" multiple times and coughing on his face. She even pulls the mask off his face leaving it exposed. 

Khadka claims it was a pure racist act and he was ill-treated based on his skin color. Lyft issued a statement saying, "Although this incident did not involve the Lyft platform, the unacceptable treatment of the driver in this video compelled us to permanently remove the rider from the Lyft community. Driving in a pandemic is not easy. Please wear a mask, respect one another, and be a good person."

The anti-masker is unapologetic

The woman, who is seen attacking Khadka. was live on Instagram recently, sharing her side to the story. Going by the Instagram handle @keepinupwforeign, in the live video she explains, Khadka threatened to drive into the freeway and let them off "in the middle of the freeway" if they didn't wear their masks. 

She says, "75% of the people she knows would have smacked him" if he said he would drop them off the freeway for not wearing masks. "All I did was take his mask off and cough a little bit," she adds before establishing that she doesn't even have Covid-19. She accepts she was "disrespectful" towards him but the entire incident could have been avoided. The woman's Instagram bio says she's a Persian. 

She has also shared videos from before the attack to show how Khadka refused to lend service to them.

Fundraised for Khadka on GoFundMe 

Cyan Banister, one of the first investors in Uber, has started a fundraiser for Khadka on GoFundMe, to support his family while he's recovering from the traumatic experience. So far, the petition has raised over $9,500. It also reveals that Uber has given Khadka a compensation of $120 to get his vehicle cleaned after pepper spray was used on it.

"Uber then failed to step up to take care of this Uber driver to help him with lost wages and cleaning from having pepper spray chemicals sprayed into the fabric of his car.  They instead began with only offering $20 in compensation for having pepper spray covering his interior fabric," it states. 

It further reads, "They then upped it to $120 in compensation but this does not come close to the expenses needed to have a professional car detailing to try and remove the strong chemicals of pepper spray and also the lost wages from not being able to work."

Meanwhile, a large number of people on Twitter have seconded Lyft's decision to ban her from availing their service. One user wrote, "Her boyfriend taught her? Df pimp culture is this? Your BOYFRIEND GONNA GET YOU GOT. Good on lyft for telling homegirl to walk. Her boyfriend can give you a ride."

Another added, "Thank you for this. Anti-mask abuse is a crime. Her abuse of the driver is criminal. Also, Lyft? Please respect your drivers by paying them a decent wage with decent health benefits. Thanks." One noted, "Drivers are essential workers. Without them, sick, old, and others in need won’t be able to get home. I’m glad @Uber and @lyft are taking a stand to protect the drivers. I wish Uber would take legal action against this violent criminal."