Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], January 2 : Prominent investor and Naukri.com founder Sanjeev Bikhchandani has weighed into the debate on gig workers praising Zomato founder Deepinder Goyal's comments on the one-day gig workers' strike while taking an indirect jab at those alleging that these workers were being exploited.
In response to Goyal's post on X, Bikhchandani wrote, "Very well written Deepinder Goyal. Every word is true. It beggars belief that a Champagne Socialist who married a film star and had a designer wedding in Udaipur and a first wedding anniversary in Maldive has the audacity to then shed crocodile tears around alleged exploitation of gig workers. Aam Aadmi my foot," the 'X' post said.
The founder of Info Edge was taking an apparent dig at the AAP MP Raghav Chadha without naming him.
Earlier, Goyal had defended the gig economy, arguing that it shattered centuries of invisibility for labourers, stating that, for the first time, workers, delivery partners, riders, and others interact directly with consumers on a large scale. He mentioned that makes inequality personal, which is why the gig economy sparks discomfort and heated debates.
https://x.com/deepigoyal/status/2007030873711927381
He explained that in the pre-gig era, the wealthy enjoyed luxury without guilt because labour was out of sight. Today, every delivery highlights "systemic inequality". Goyal asserted that some people defend the system as "they choose it", meanwhile, others demand change, terming it as exploitation; however, the core issue is emotional reckoning, not just policy.
On Wednesday, the Platform-based delivery workers affiliated with the Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers (IFAT) observed a nationwide strike, protesting against unfair working conditions, low wages, and the absence of social security, warning that delivery services may be severely disrupted during peak hours.
Earlier, Aam Aadmi Party's Rajya Sabha MP Raghav reiterated his call to ban 10-minute delivery apps, claiming that the same companies have been oppressing gig workers and shooting up their evaluations on their backs, enriching only the companies.
"In today's time, Swiggy Zomato delivery boys, Blinkit Zepto riders, Ola Uber drivers, are a workforce on the back of which these big companies have become unicorns; they have got billion-dollar valuations. In this entire ecosystem that has been created, if there's one group of people who are oppressed and under immense pressure, it's the gig workers," the AAP MP said during an exclusive interview with ANI.
Under the 10-minute delivery guarantee, a gig worker who drives recklessly, becomes increasingly anxious, risks losing incentives, and faces customer abuse if the delivery is late, while not receiving any regular worker protections, Chadha said.
As part of improving working conditions and rights for workers, Chadha has proposed setting working hours for gig workers to end the practice of people working 14-16 hours a day for incentives.