Airlines can take action against passengers not wearing masks: Delhi HC

Taking a suo motu cognisance of improper mask use and violations of social distancing norms on an Air India flight from Kolkata on March 5 the judge asked the DGCA to put up on its website the guidelines and protocols for the passengers and cabin crew

The airlines are free to take action and put passengers on the no flyers list if they do not wear masks despite warnings, a Delhi high court judge has said after taking a suo motu (on his own) cognisance of improper mask use and violations of social distancing norms on an Air India flight from Kolkata on March 5.

Delhi high court. (File photo)

“In the event of any passenger being unwilling to follow this protocol prior to the flight taking off, the passenger should be offloaded without delay. If a passenger, despite being reminded more than once in flight, refuses to follow this protocol, action should be taken against the passenger in accordance with the guidelines issued by the DGCA [Directorate General of Civil Aviation] or Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, including placing the passenger on a ‘no-fly’ regimen, either permanently or for a stipulated, sufficiently long, period,” justice Hari Shankar said. He cited “the stubbornness of the fellow passengers in wearing masks below their chins” on the flight.

The court asked the DGCA to put up on its website the guidelines and protocols for the passengers and cabin crew. It directed all airlines to ensure written instructions regarding the protocol to be followed be given to passengers along with the boarding passes. The court added the instructions should include the measures that could be taken against passengers in case of violations of the protocol. It said the passengers should be sensitised regarding their responsibility.

Shankar said the in-flight crew shall carry out periodical checks of the aircraft to ensure all passengers are complying with the protocol, especially regarding masks. “...masks should be worn as directed by governmental instructions, covering the nose and mouth, and not worn merely covering the mouth or below the chin.”

The court said the resurgence of Covid-19 cases after they showed signs of ebbing is completely unconscionable. “Passengers in a flight are in a closed air-conditioned environment, and, even if one of the passengers suffers from Covid, the effect on other passengers could be cataclysmic,” it said. “It is a matter of common knowledge that being within arm’s length distance of a Covid carrier, even if he is asymptomatic and is merely speaking, is more than sufficient to transmit the virus.”

Shankar said there may be a medical necessity for some passengers for not wearing the mask and such cases must be the exception after due and strict assessment. He directed the airlines to ensure such passengers are isolated and kept at a safe distance from others.