Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru
Bengaluru, Apr 10: A passenger on Lucknow to Bengaluru Indigo flight was offloaded after he complained about mosquitoes in the flight, reports said.
The passenger from Bengaluru, Dr Saurabh Rai, said that the flight was full of mosquitoes and alleged that he was manhandled and threatened by the crew.
However, Indigo Airline maintained that Rai was offloaded because of his 'unruly behaviour'.
A statement issued by the airline on Monday said, "An IndiGo passenger, Saurabh Rai who was scheduled to fly this morning on 6E-541 from Lucknow to Bangalore, was offloaded on grounds of unruly behavior. Prior to take-off, Rai, expressed concerns regarding mosquitos on board. However, before the cabin crew on board could address his concerns, Rai aggressively expressed his annoyance and started to use threatening language."
"As the matter escalated after the closure of the aircraft doors, Rai attempted to instigate other passengers on board to damage the aircraft, and used words such as 'hijack'. Such actions are absolutely unacceptable, and there is zero tolerance for such threatening language on board an aircraft. Hence, keeping in mind applicable safety protocols, the crew apprised the pilot-in-command, who decided to offload Rai from the flight," the statement read.
"Customer satisfaction is core to our business. However, the safety and security of our passengers as well as colleagues is of primary concern. Therefore, any untoward conduct of this nature is of serious concern to us, and as a responsible corporate citizen we will take all necessary action to address this violation.
"Further, we would like to mention here that the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has prohibited disinfectant fumigation in aircraft while passengers are onboard. This order is currently being challenged by IndiGo before the NGT and the same is pending for adjudication," the airline added.
Rai however said, "The Indigo flight from Lucknow to Bengaluru was full of mosquitoes, when I raised objection, I was manhandled by the crew and offloaded from the aircraft, I was even threatened."
Following the incident, some of the Twitter users said that they too had faced mosquito problem on Indigo flights.
The union government on Tuesday ordered a probe into the incident.
The probe was ordered by minister of civil aviation and commerce and industry Suresh Prabhu.
"I have ordered an enquiry into the incident of off-loading passenger Dr Saurabh Rai by Indigo at Lucknow airport," Prabhu tweeted.