A farmer from Tumakuru district in Karnataka, who shot to fame for arranging Rs 10 lakh in 30 minutes after being allegedly insulted by the staff of a Mahindra showroom, said that he protested against the treatment meted out to him with an intention to prevent a repeat of such behaviour towards others.
The farmer, Kempe Gowda, of Ramanapalya near Hebbur, was allegedly insulted by the showroom staff, who questioned if he had the money to purchase a vehicle. The incident took place on January 21.
Following the incident, business tycoon and Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra reacted and the company apologised for the incident. The staff of Mahindra Group visited the farmer's residence, apologising for the incident, and invited him to buy the Bolero pick-up goods vehicle.
"The showroom staff had come to my house and apologised. They invited me to buy the vehicle. I happily got the vehicle delivered (on January 28). I paid Rs 9.4 lakh. They didn't give any concession and I also didn't ask for a discount," he said. "No one should be looked down upon or judged by the clothes they wear."
Earlier, Anand Mahindra had welcomed the farmer into the Mahindra family and the company said the matter of the incident of humiliation of a farmer at a Mahindra showroom in Tumakuru district of Karnataka got resolved. "Let me add my welcome to Kempe Gowda..," Mahindra said on Friday evening.
Mahindra Automotive reacted on Twitter, saying, "We regret the inconvenience caused to Kempe Gowda and his friends during their visit to our dealership on January 21. As promised, we have taken appropriate measures and the matter is now resolved. We would like to thank Kempe Gowda for choosing to be with us and we welcome him into the Mahindra family."
"The core purpose of @MahindraRise is to enable our communities and all stakeholders to rise. And a key core value is to uphold the dignity of the individual. Any aberration from this philosophy will be addressed with great urgency," Mahindra tweeted, quoting a tweet by Mahindra and Mahindra CEO Veejay Nakra.
The Mahindra automotive company on Twitter said, "Dealers are the front face of our company. It is our responsibility to ensure that they behave in the most customer-centric manner and ensure the dignity of all our customers. We will investigate the incident and if there is any transgression, we will take appropriate action which includes counselling and training of our frontline staff."
The showroom staff had apologised for their mistake following police action. Gowda's quick action and vigour was been appreciated by people all over the state and his photos and videos have gone viral on social media.
"I came to make a purchase of a Bolero pick-up goods vehicle. I had gone to the showroom along with my seven friends and uncle. Company field officer mocked and chided me that I don't have Rs 10 with me and how could I have the capacity to purchase the vehicle. The officer also said that no one comes to purchase a car in such a group," the farmer said.
"My uncle asked him if we bring the money, will he be able to deliver the vehicle. The field officer challenged that if we managed to bring the money, he would deliver the vehicle immediately and he again challenged us to bring the money in half an hour. I arranged Rs 10 lakh in 30 minutes and placed it in front of the field officer. I managed to arrange it with my friends' help," he said.
"I had approached the police about the insult caused by the showroom employees. I am an educated man. I have studied till Class 10. What will these people do to farmers from villages?" he said.
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