Gurgaon: Woman In Wheelchair 'Denied' Entry Into Upscale Restaurant, Owner Responds
Hours after Srishti’s tweets, the Gurugram Police also responded to her and asked her to share her details for further action.
New Delhi: A woman took to Twitter on Saturday to narrate how she was “denied” entry into a upscale restaurant in Gurugram's DLF Cyber Hub because she was in a wheelchair. Sharing her ordeal, the woman named Shristi said a staff member at Raasta Gurgaon told them other customers "will get disturbed" if she went in with the wheelchair.
Her Twitter bio mentions she is a "disabled" person.
In a detailed thread posted on Twitter, the woman wrote that she was visiting the restaurant with her “best friend and her family”, and one of the staff members “ignored twice” their request for a table for four.
Upon asking for a third time, Srishti wrote, the staff member said “the wheelchair won’t go inside”.
I went to my @raastagurgaon with my best friend and her fam last night. This was one of my first outings in so long and I wanted to have fun. Bhaiya (my friend's elder brother) asked for a table for four. The staff at the desk ignored him twice. 1/n
— Srishti (she/her🏳🌈) (@Srishhhh_tea) February 12, 2022
“We thought it was an accessibility issue, but it wasn't. We told him that we'd manage, just book us a table. What he said next left us all shocked for a while. He told us pointing towards me that ‘the customers will get disturbed’ and denied us entry,” she posted.
Shristi also shared a short video of the incident.
— Srishti (she/her🏳🌈) (@Srishhhh_tea) February 12, 2022
Co-founder’s response
As Srishti’s tweets started to gain momentum, Raasta Gurgaon’s Founder and Partner Goumtesh Singh replied to her Twitter thread by apologising and ensuring appropriate action against members found responsible.
“Dear Ms. Srishti Pandey, I am personally looking into this incident. Let me start by apologising on behalf of the entire team for any bad experience that you may have had. Please rest assured if any of our members are found in the wrong, appropriate action will be taken against them,” Goumtesh wrote.
Dear Ms. Srishti Pandey,
— goumtesh Singh (@goumtesh) February 12, 2022
I am personally looking into this incident. Let me start by apologising on behalf of entire team for any bad experience that you may have had. Please rest assured if any of our members is found in the wrong, appropriate action will be taken against them.
Response by Gurugram Police
Hours after Srishti’s tweets, the Gurugram Police also responded to her and asked her to share her details for further action.
Kindly share your contact details and complete address for further action via direct message.
— Gurugram Police (@gurgaonpolice) February 12, 2022
Actor Pooja Bhat’s reaction to the incident
Actor Pooja Bhat extended her sympathy with Srishti and expressed her anguish over the incident. “Am terribly saddened that this happened to you. We suffer from an absolute lack of grace as a society. Wheelchair accessibility is one thing but refusing to see a human being who is confined to one as an equal and deserving of dignity is quite another,” she wrote.
Am terribly saddened that this happened to you. We suffer from an absolute lack of grace as a society. Wheelchair accessibility is one thing but refusing to see a human being who is confined to one as an equal and deserving of dignity is quite another. 🙏
— Pooja Bhatt (@PoojaB1972) February 12, 2022
Shrishti's tweet thread has gained a lot of traction, with her first post having been retweeted over 2,500 times. There are over 500 quote-tweets and over 6,000 likes at the time of writing this report.