In his first public comment since a farmer in Karnataka was allegedly humiliated by sales employees at a Mahindra & Mahindra SUV showroom, industrialist Anand Mahindra stressed the significance of preserving an individual’s dignity.

“The core purpose of @MahindraRise is to allow our communities and all stakeholders to Rise. Individual Dignity is a key Core Value. Any deviation from this philosophy will be addressed as soon as possible “he said in a tweet on Tuesday, quoting Mahindra and Mahindra CEO Veejay Nakra.

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Nakra has promised an investigation and action in the aftermath of the incident, including “counselling and training of frontline employees.”

The accusations came after a farmer in Karnataka said he was embarrassed by a salesman who sneered that he couldn’t afford a car when he went to a dealership to buy a Bolero pick-up truck. In a scene straight out of a movie, the farmer issued a challenge and returned with the money in an hour. The salesperson apologised.

Videos of the incident, which occurred on Friday at a Mahindra shop in Tumakuru, Karnataka, were extensively circulated and even tweeted to Anand Mahindra, the group’s chairman.

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Kempegowda, the farmer, had gone to buy a Bolero pick-up when the salesman allegedly yelled him off and requested him to leave.

According to the farmer, the car is worth 10 lakh, and “you probably don’t even have 10 in your wallet.” According to the farmer and his pals, he fired Kempegowda because of his appearance.

A dispute erupted, and Kempegowda challenged the salesperson to arrange for the delivery of an SUV the same day if he provided the money within an hour.

He returned with the money. The startled sales executive, predictably, was unable to arrange for immediate delivery – the waiting is normally lengthy. It would take at least four days to deliver his car.

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Frustrated, Kempegowda and his friends demanded an apology, and more hot words were exchanged before police intervened and broke up the brawl.

Finally, the sales executive apologised to Kempegowda. “I don’t want to buy a car from your store,” the farmer stated as he walked away with his ten lakh rupees.