Indian-origin Singaporean woman jailed for slapping taxi driver over fare

An Indian-origin Singaporean woman was sentenced to two weeks in jail on Thursday for voluntarily causing hurt by slapping a taxi driver allegedly over fare at a police station.

Shalini Devarajan, 36, refused to pay her taxi fare of SGD 24 (USD19) because she had no cash and rejected the payment options suggested by the driver.

After the woman challenged him to take her to a police station, the 73-year-old taxi driver complied — and that is where she slapped him, according to a Channel News Asia report.

The court heard that the victim was driving a taxi flagged down by another man at about 3 pm on November 11, 2025.

Devarajan boarded the cab alone and the victim was instructed to take her to her apartment block in Yishun housing estate.

The victim noticed that Devarajan reeked of alcohol. He drove the sleeping woman to her destination.

When they reached the block’s shelter, the driver woke her up and told her the fare was SGD 24.

Devarajan said she had neither cash nor any means of cashless payment. She proceeded to call someone before saying that she needed to go up to her unit to get the money.

The driver asked her to leave her phone behind before going up, but she refused. The driver also suggested following her up to the unit, but she refused.

Around 4.20 pm, Devarajan slapped the driver once on his left cheek, causing him pain. The victim later went to the hospital for treatment and received one day of medical leave.

The taxi fare was not paid and Devarajan was arrested that same day. The prosecution sought compensation of about SGD 172 for the victim’s medical bills, but Devarajan claimed she had no funds or money at all.

In her mitigation, Devarajan stated she did not realise she had a SGD 50 note in her pocket when told the fare.