A Bengaluru-based business development professional was fired and faced legal action for threatening to throw acid on a social media influencer. The incident came to light after the woman’s husband lodged a complaint, stating that Nikith Shetty, the accused, had warned his wife about her choice of clothing, leading to the threat. “This person is threatening to throw acid on my wife’s face for her choice of clothes. Please take immediate action against this person to prevent any incident from happening,” Shahbaz Ansar, a journalist at The Indian Express’ vertical InUth, said in a post on X tagging the authorities in Karnataka.
The tweet, shared by the woman’s husband, journalist Shahbaz Ansar, quickly sparked widespread outrage and prompted swift action from Shetty’s employer.
The influencer’s husband took to social media to expose the professional and claimed he had lodged a complaint with police. The husband posted the screenshot of a message allegedly posted by Shetty, which read: “Hey b#$@, kindly tell your wife to follow a good dress specially in Karnataka or else I may splash acid on her face.”
The company where he worked in a post on Instagram said he has been fired and a case has been filed against him.
“We are deeply saddened to address a serious incident involving one of our employees, Nikith Shetty, who made a threatening statement regarding another individual’s choice of clothing. This behaviour is absolutely unacceptable and goes against the core values we uphold at Etios Services,” the company said.
“As a company committed to fostering a safe and respectful environment, we have taken immediate action. Nikith’s employment has been terminated for a period of five years, and we have filed a case against him to ensure accountability for his actions,” said Etios Digital Services, a full-stack marketing agency.
Speaking to TOI, Shahbaz Ansar said, “As she is a social media influencer, she gets at least 10 abusive messages every day. But this particular message was harmful, so we got scared. Police said they will find him and they are investigating the case.”
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