A short-seller research report published by Morpheus Research on March 30, 2026, targeting MakeMyTrip Limited contains dozens of serious allegations about India’s dominant online travel platform. But one story, buried inside Part 4 of the 100-plus page document, stands out from everything else in the report for its sheer human impact.
A couple checked into a hotel booked through MakeMyTrip. Before becoming intimate in their room, a sixth sense alerted them to an oddly positioned flower pot. Upon closer inspection, they found a hidden camera concealed inside the flower vase, aimed directly at their bed.
They confronted the hotel management. The hotel refused to refund them. They then contacted MakeMyTrip to report the incident and seek resolution.
MakeMyTrip’s response, according to the couple who were subsequently contacted by Morpheus Research investigators, was to offer a 25 percent refund.
The couple’s reaction, quoted in the Morpheus report, was unprintable.
The hotel, which Morpheus Research identifies as Hotel Limon and describes as listed on MakeMyTrip as a well-rated four-star business hotel offering comfortable stays with modern amenities, remains listed on MakeMyTrip today. Its rating at the time of the Morpheus report was 4.2 stars, described as Very Good.
This Is Not an Isolated Incident
Morpheus Research did not find one unsafe hotel. It aggregated reviews from 3,679 budget and lower mid-scale properties across Bengaluru, Delhi, and Mumbai and found at least 332 properties where MakeMyTrip’s own review system contained clear evidence of women’s safety issues, extortion, and fraudulent practices at check-in. The vast majority of these hotels remain listed on the platform.
Among the 332 properties with documented problems, Morpheus specifically identified 113 hotels where customer reviews indicate serious concerns for female travellers. In January 2026, just two months before the Morpheus report was published, MakeMyTrip unveiled what it called AI-powered women-focused safety and assurance features, announcing that integrated AI, user-generated content, and verified partner data would enhance confidence and decision-making for women travellers.
Morpheus found 113 hotels with documented women’s safety issues still listed after that announcement.
A second example in the Morpheus report involves a hotel called Qotel Comfort, where multiple female travellers reported that male staff members visited their rooms in the middle of the night asking if they were travelling alone. Other reviews for the same hotel described no locks on the door. The hotel remains listed on MakeMyTrip with a Very Good rating.
A third example involves Gateway Inn in Mumbai, where male employees entered the room of a group of female travellers without permission in the middle of the night. The travellers felt so unsafe they left the hotel at 1.30 AM to find alternative accommodation and left a review documenting the incident. Gateway Inn remains listed on MakeMyTrip with a Very Good rating.
What MakeMyTrip’s Own Former Employee Said
Perhaps the most damaging element of Morpheus Research’s findings on this issue is not what the hotels did. It is what MakeMyTrip did, or more precisely, what it did not do, according to its own former employees.
A former MakeMyTrip Business Development Manager told Morpheus Research: “We basically try to say them that you shouldn’t be doing it again and again, but we actually don’t do it. We don’t ban them.”
A former business head of MakeMyTrip confirmed to Morpheus that the number of actual delistings or bans against hotels for these practices was negligible.
The gap between MakeMyTrip’s public position and its internal practice is the core of Morpheus Research’s allegation on this point. The company publicly declared itself a leader in implementing consumer protection guidelines. It unveiled AI-powered safety features for women travellers. It told regulators its platform was free of dark patterns and consumer harms.
Its own former employees told Morpheus Research that when hotels were found to be engaging in the kind of behaviour that led a couple to find a camera aimed at their bed, the company told them not to do it again and kept them listed.
The 219 Extortion Hotels
Beyond the safety issue, Morpheus Research found 219 hotels across Bengaluru, Delhi, and Mumbai where customers reported being extorted for additional payments at check-in, typically after arriving late at night when alternative accommodation options were limited. One Bengaluru hotel, O Abhimaani Comforts, has 16 separate reviews across several years documenting consistent attempts to extract money from guests at check-in. Four of those reviews came from MakeMyTrip Gold and Platinum loyalty customers. The hotel remains listed with a Good rating.
A former MakeMyTrip employee told Morpheus that approximately 1.5 percent of bookings experience booking denied issues, which includes the kind of check-in extortion practices documented in those reviews. On a platform processing the volume of bookings that MakeMyTrip handles, 1.5 percent represents potentially over 1,500 bookings experiencing these issues every single day.
The Unregistered Hotels
Morpheus Research also found evidence of unlicensed hotels listed on MakeMyTrip in Goa, despite a 2024 state government mandate requiring OTAs to list only properties registered with the Department of Tourism. Posing as travellers, Morpheus investigators contacted three specific hotels listed on MakeMyTrip and asked for their DOT registration numbers. All three acknowledged they did not have one. All three remain listed on MakeMyTrip.
What MakeMyTrip Has Said
MakeMyTrip has not responded to the Morpheus Research report at the time of publication. The company has previously stated that it is at the forefront of implementing consumer protection guidelines, that it works continuously to guard against consumer harms, and that its platform is free of dark patterns. In January 2026, it specifically highlighted its AI-powered safety features for women travellers as evidence of its commitment to customer protection.
The couple who found the camera in the flower vase contacted MakeMyTrip. They were offered 25 percent back. The hotel kept its 4.2 star Very Good rating.
All allegations in this article are sourced from the Morpheus Research short-seller report on MakeMyTrip published March 30, 2026. Morpheus Research holds a short position in MakeMyTrip shares and profits if the stock price declines. MakeMyTrip has not responded to the report at time of publication. Business Upturn has not independently verified the allegations. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice.