Zomato faces backlash for tagging Gurugram Police in 'Banana Chips' post on social media

Online food delivery giant Zomato has come under fire for a controversial move on social media where they tagged Gurugram Police in a post centered around 'banana chips.' The incident sparked outrage, but Zomato swiftly rectified its actions by deleting the post and issuing an apology.

The episode unfolded on Wednesday when Zomato posted an image portraying a packet of banana chips placed atop a desk at their office. Adjacent to it was a computer screen featuring the conspicuous word "HELPPP!!!" prominently displayed in bold, oversized font.

Zomato captioned the image with, "Hello @gurgaonpolice someone brought drugs to the office," seemingly implying that banana chips are so addictive that they equate to a drug.


The incident triggered a backlash from the online community. A user on the social media platform X, identified as Ravi Handa, expressed his discontent with Zomato's actions, labeling it "irresponsible behavior from a listed company." He further criticised Zomato for seemingly using the police handle on social media to garner likes and retweets.

Handa pointed out the misuse of valuable police resources, stating, "Now someone from Gurgaon Police will have to respond to this and waste resources which could be better used elsewhere."


Approximately an hour later, Zomato responded to Handa's concerns, acknowledging their error. The official Zomato customer care account issued an apology to Ravi Handa, saying, "Hi Ravi, you're right. Reading it from another lens, we realized it's an irresponsible and unnecessary tweet. We've taken it down and sincerely apologize."

As the incident gained traction, other users in the comment section weighed in on the matter. One user criticized Zomato's social media strategy, suggesting they reconsider their approach: "@zomato @zomatocare You guys should fire your social media agency or shut down your social media handle forever. Just for the sake of a few likes and engagement from teenagers #zomato stop spending crores of revenues of your investors' hard-earned money. #boycott #zomato."

On the contrary, another user defended Zomato's actions, emphasizing that the tag was used in a light-hearted manner. They asserted that the decision to engage with such posts lies with the Gurgaon Police's social media handle.