Aberdeen City Council's Licensing Committee has given taxi driver Satheesh Nirupakaran a formal warning, to stay on his record for two years. Any further complaints are to be referred back to the committee. Members took the decision on Wednesday 28 October 2026, when they reviewed his taxi driver and operator licence at the Town House.
The three complaints
Three complaints reached the council within a month. Two were refusals of wheelchair passengers at the railway station rank. The third concerned language towards a passenger, and driving away with a rear door open while her property was still in the taxi.
On Thursday 6 August 2026 a driver waiting second in the rank reported that a man in a motorised wheelchair was refused. The complaint describes Mr Nirupakaran's vehicle as a large black wheelchair-accessible taxi, and records that he told the other driver he was exempt and could not fold a seat or open the ramp. He was told a motorised wheelchair does not need to be pushed. He still refused the fare.
On Sunday 9 August the same driver reported a second refusal: a wheelchair passenger accompanied by an assistant, after other drivers had told him to accept the hire. That complaint also describes him swearing at the reporting driver and raising a finger.
The information sheet states that his medical exemption expired in 2025. He was notified and applied for a new certificate only after he was told of the complaints. An exemption certificate permits a driver to refuse assistance only. The hire itself still has to be accepted. Officers recorded that neither of these passengers would have needed his help.
The third complaint is dated 21 August 2026. The passenger had collected donations from ScotRail and walked to the station taxi ramp with several bags, asking for George Street. On John Street she told him he had taken the wrong lane. The complaint describes an argument about the meter, then him telling her, with a swear word, to get out. She felt scared. He drove off, on her account, before she could shut the door or lift the bags from the boot, and bystanders shouted that the door was still open. She telephoned the station announcer to say the donations were still in the taxi.
His account
In a written response, Mr Nirupakaran accepts that the certificate had lapsed. The back condition behind the earlier exemption had not, and he could not safely help someone into the taxi. He describes the first passenger as travelling alone and needing that help, and the second as being with a carer who told him she was not trained to load the wheelchair.
He wrote: "I fully accept that I should have ensured that my exemption certificate remained current. I did not refuse these passengers because I did not want to carry wheelchair users; the issue was my genuine concern that the physical assistance required could cause further injury to my back."
He disputes the George Street complaint. He approached by John Street, which he understood to be the shortest route. At the junction, on his account, the passenger challenged him aggressively and wanted to go the other way. He stopped soon afterwards. She got out without paying. He did not deliberately leave with her luggage, and once he realised the bags were still in the taxi he handed them to Police Scotland.
What the committee decided
The committee resolved that a formal warning be placed on the licence holder's record for two years, and that any further complaints be referred back for consideration.
Taxi driver licence 1780 was granted on 20 May 2026 and expires on 9 February 2029. On the grant date he was before the same committee after Police Scotland made a representation on the renewal. The representation concerned a traffic offence that left nine points on his DVLA licence.