Denied boarding, Air India passenger suffers ‘panic attack’ at Delhi airport

In the video, the woman can been seen lying on the floor next to the Air India counter at the boarding gate with the airline staff hovering over her. Her two-co passengers are heard asking for assistance and for a doctor to be called.

A woman allegedly suffered what appeared to be a “panic attack” at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport last week after she was reportedly stopped and denied passage at the boarding gates by the Air India staff. The incident came to the fore on Wednesday after a video of the woman lying on the floor was widely shared on social media throughout the day.The airline later issued a statement stating the woman and two other passengers with her had arrived late and the boarding gates had shut by then.

The user namely Vipul Bhimani, who shared the video on social media, said that the woman is his aunt and is diabetic. (Screengrab/ Vipul Bhimani Twitter)

In the video, the woman can been seen lying on the floor next to the Air India counter at the boarding gate with the airline staff hovering over her. Her two-co passengers are heard asking for assistance and for a doctor to be called.

Air India said a doctor and CISF personnel were called in by its staff; however, the passenger started feeling better by the time the doctor arrived and refused any medical or wheelchair assistance.

According to the airline, the claims made in the video were “misleading”.

“A video clipping is circulating on various digital platforms showing an incident at Delhi Airport involving one Air India passenger. It is conveying a misleading image of Air India being apathetic towards a passenger, who is seen lying near the gate,” the airline said.

“Air India always accords top priority to passenger safety and comfort. However, as a responsible airline, we have to adhere to rules laid down by the regulatory authorities and, in any case, we could not delay the flight especially when all passengers had boarded on-time. We hope this clears the air on the above issue,” the airline further said.

An airport official also confirmed that the incident took place last week and the woman recovered by the time a doctor arrived on the scene.