"When will govt agencies intervene?", Kunal Kamra hits at Ola again, urges Nitin Gadkari to step in

Oct 29, 2024

Ola Electric’s CEO Bhavish Aggarwal
Comedian Kunal Kamra took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his frustration over the poor condition of Ola Electric scooters and urged Union Minister Nitin Gadkari to intervene. In his post, Kamra highlighted the plight of Indian customers, criticising the lack of accountability from Ola. He emphasised how customers are struggling to commute and are being forced to take bad loans due to issues that, according to him, are the company’s responsibility.

His post was triggered by a complaint from Rangraj Nagar in Solapur, where several Ola scooters were reportedly found in poor condition. The user expressed outrage over the absence of qualified engineers or technicians at the site, stating that such negligence is unacceptable given that customers have invested their hard-earned money into these products.

Tagging prominent figures including Ola Electric’s CEO Bhavish Aggarwal, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Minister Gadkari, Kamra's post urged government agencies to intervene and address the grievances.

Another X user also backed the post saying, "I'm from Solapur, and I've witnessed this firsthand... The way consumers are treated is the worst I've seen, especially after they've paid the full amount for Ola Electric."

Ola's Bhavish Aggarwal Vs Kunal Kamra
Earlier, Ola Electric Mobility said that it has addressed 99.1% of the complaints it received from the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), as per a recent regulatory filing. In response to a show cause notice from the CCPA issued on October 7, 2024, for "alleged violation of consumer rights, misleading advertisement and unfair trade practices," the company provided necessary information and clarifications.

Ola Electric Mobility, "We wish to emphasise that out of 10,644 complaints that we received from the CCPA, 99.1 per cent of the complaints were resolved to the complete satisfaction of the customer as per Ola Electric's robust redressal mechanism."

The CCPA had granted the company 15 days to respond to the notice. This development came after a public exchange between Ola founder Bhavish Agarwal and stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra on social media platform X, where Kamra raised concerns about the after-sales and service issues faced by Ola Electric customers.

HSBC cuts target price for Ola Electric
HSBC has reduced the target price for Ola Electric Mobility stock from Rs 140 to Rs 110. This adjustment follows expectations of slower electric two-wheeler (e2W) market penetration and ongoing service challenges. However, the global brokerage has kept its ‘buy’ rating on the stock.

Ola Electric has seen varied performance since its IPO. Initially, the stock price doubled from its IPO value. Despite this, the company has faced a series of negative news, mainly around quality issues related to its Gen1 platform.

HSBC acknowledged these challenges but noted, "It assumed a steep learning curve for the company and a much smoother quality curve."