Mumbai Police Shuts Down Viral Auto Driver’s Rs 5-8 Lakh A Month Locker Service Near US Consulate
The area around the US Consulate sees thousands of visa applicants daily.
A Mumbai autorickshaw driver, who recently went viral for claiming to earn "Rs 5-8 lakhs/month" without ferrying passengers, has found himself under police scrutiny. His unconventional business — a makeshift locker service for visitors to the US Consulate in Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) — has now been shut down following an inquiry by local authorities.
The controversy was sparked by a LinkedIn post a few days ago from Rahul Rupani, a product leader at Lenskart. Rupani recounted his experience during a visit to the US Consulate for a visa appointment, where he found himself stuck with his bag, unsure where to leave it due to strict security protocols prohibiting bags inside the premises.
While "clueless on the footpath," Rupani said, he was approached by an autorickshaw driver who offered help. "Sir, bag de do. Safe rakhunga, mera roz ka hai. Rs 1,000 charge hai (Sir, give me the bag. I will keep it safe. This is my daily job. Pay Rs 1,000 for this)," the driver told him.
Though initially hesitant, Rupani agreed to the offer and later shared the incident on social media. He described it as a "brilliant business" idea that addressed a real pain point for visa applicants. The post quickly gained traction.
However, the Mumbai Police soon stepped in. According to a Hindustan Times report, the BKC police summoned the autorickshaw driver along with 12 others allegedly operating similar informal locker services in the area. A senior officer confirmed that while the practice had become common, it violated local regulations.
"Parking is strictly prohibited in the area due to security concerns," a senior officer from BKC police station told Hindustan Times. "Auto drivers are only permitted to drop passengers off and leave," the officer added.
The police said that none of the drivers had a licence to operate a locker service.
No formal complaint has been registered against the drivers, but the authorities made it clear that running such services without authorisation is not permissible, especially in a high-security zone like BKC.
Speaking to The Free Press Journal, a senior officer said, "The auto driver has a licence to transport passengers, not to run a locker service. Therefore, we inquired into the matter and he has now stopped providing lockers."
The area around the US Consulate sees thousands of visa applicants daily. Most of them are unaware that bags, phones and other personal items are not allowed inside the premises, which often leaves them scrambling for safe storage options. In the absence of an official locker facility near the consulate, the ad hoc solutions offered by auto drivers had emerged as a stopgap, albeit unauthorised, arrangement.
