DCW chief demands arrests of persons who urinated on Air India women passengers

Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief Swati Maliwal said she is issuing notices to the Delhi police, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Air India over the matter

Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief Swati Maliwal on Friday demanded the arrest of the two drunken men who had reportedly urinated on women passengers on different occasions on board Air India flights and said she is issuing notices to the Delhi police, aviation watchdog the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the airline over the matter.

DCW chief Swati Maliwal. (HT File Photo)

“It’s shocking to note that the accused haven’t been arrested yet. Simply banning the person isn’t enough. I’m issuing notices to Delhi Police, DGCA & Air India in the matter,” she told news agency ANI, describing the matter as ‘disgusting’ and ‘shameful’.

On November 26, a man on board a New York-Delhi Air India (AI 102) flight allegedly urinated on an elderly woman shortly after the meal service closed.

The Delhi police on Thursday issued a lookout notice and also informed the immigration authorities to prevent this man from leaving the country. The accused has been identified as Shankar Mishra, a resident of Mumbai and a vice-president (VP) at the American multinational company (MNC), Well Fargo. The Delhi police, which sent a team to Mumbai, said he is absconding and efforts are on to apprehend him.

In a similar incident on December 6, an ‘inebriated’ male passenger allegedly urinated on a woman co-passenger on a Paris-bound Air India flight. However, no police complaint or FIR has been filed over the matter. Air India on Wednesday said that efforts were made to take action against the passenger and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) were summoned when the flight landed in Delhi. But ‘as the victim and the accused reached an understanding’ the security forces freed the passenger after the accused issued a written apology to the victim, the airline said.

DGCA has taken cognizance of the two incidents and issued show cause notices to Air India asking ‘why action should not be taken against them for ‘dereliction’ of duty while handling the November 26 ‘urination’ incident. Terming the Tata group-owned airline’s way of dealing with the matter as ‘unprofessional’, the aviation regulator has directed Air India’s Accountable Manager, director of in-flight services, all the pilots and cabin crew members of that flight to submit a reply within two weeks over the issue.

Under the Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) issued by DGCA in 2017, an airline has the power to ban an individual from flying for a lifetime for unruly behaviour.