A consumer court in Andhra Pradesh has held ride-hailing platform Ola responsible for the actions of one of its drivers after a woman travelling for a judicial examination was allegedly left stranded on a highway. The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Kurnool directed the company to pay Rs 50,000 as compensation and Rs 5,000 towards litigation costs to the complainant, Ullaji Chennamma, a TOI report stated. The commission said the incident caused serious mental stress and emotional trauma to the candidate at a crucial moment when she was travelling to appear for the Andhra Pradesh Junior Civil Judge Mains Examination.Ride to exam centre turns stressfulAccording to the complaint, the incident took place on October 11, 2025. Chennamma had booked an Ola Auto at 7:08 am from Pottur Vari Thota in Guntur to Acharya Nagarjuna University. Her mother accompanied her for the journey.The complaint stated that the driver arrived in a vehicle with a registration number different from the one displayed in the Ola app. Even after the mismatch was noticed, the driver allegedly insisted that the OTP be shared before starting the ride.Instead of taking the route towards the university, the driver allegedly diverted the vehicle and travelled nearly 25 kilometres away from the destination. The complaint further stated that he stopped near Sitaram Nagar on the Narasaraopet–Guntur Road and demanded extra money to continue the trip.When the passenger refused to pay more, the driver allegedly left both the woman and her mother on the roadside around 7:28 am. The complainant said she was forced to cancel the ride despite being on her way to an important examination.Commission says exam candidate suffered emotional distressWhile hearing the matter, the consumer commission underlined the seriousness of the situation and the impact it could have had on the candidate’s mental state before a competitive examination."This Commission cannot ignore the fact that the complainant was proceeding to attend a highly competitive judicial mains examination, which required mental composure, punctuality, and emotional stability. Leaving a woman candidate and her mother stranded on a public road under such circumstances undoubtedly caused immense mental agony, fear, inconvenience, humiliation, and emotional distress," the commission said.The order noted that the situation went beyond a routine ride dispute because the complainant was travelling for a major career-related examination that demanded calmness and timely arrival.Ola says it was only a platformDuring the proceedings, Ola argued that it only provides an online platform connecting customers with independent drivers and therefore should not be held directly responsible for the conduct of the driver.The company also informed the commission that no payment had been collected from the complainant. It further stated that the driver had been suspended and the vehicle was off-boarded after the complaint was raised.However, the commission rejected this defence"Merely describing itself as an 'online platform' does not absolve the Opposite Party from its responsibility towards consumers who avail services through its application. Once the service was booked and commenced through the platform operated by the Opposite Party, the latter owed a duty of care and responsibility to ensure reasonable safety, reliability, and accountability in the service rendered through its associated drivers," the commission further noted.The commission also observed that Ola’s own decision to suspend the driver weakened its stand before the court."Such action on the part of the opposite party itself indicates that there was substance in the grievance raised by the complainant and that the conduct of the driver was improper."Rs 5 lakh demand reduced to Rs 50,000The complainant had sought compensation of Rs 5 lakh. However, the commission described the amount as excessive and instead awarded Rs 50,000.At the same time, the panel recognised the seriousness of the emotional impact caused by the incident.The order referred to "the mental agony, inconvenience, emotional distress, and the anxiety caused to the complainant at a crucial stage of her examination" while deciding the compensation amount.The commission directed Ola to comply with the order within 45 days of receiving it.Consumer court asks for stricter checksThe commission also advised the platform to strengthen monitoring of drivers linked to its service."Ola should implement and maintain stricter internal monitoring and verification mechanisms to curb such unfair and negligent practices by drivers operating through its platform, so as to safeguard the interests and safety of consumers," the commission concluded.