Air India official transferred, promoted despite an ongoing sexual harassment inquiry against him

A senior Air India employee has been transferred and given higher responsibilities by being asked to join his duty in Delhi, despite having an ongoing sexual harassment

A senior Air India employee has been transferred and given higher responsibilities by being asked to join his duty in Delhi, despite having an ongoing sexual harassment inquiry against him. The airline decided to shift the official as the current head of the department is set to retire soon.

HT Image

The promotion and transfer order (HT has a copy of it) is dated May 13 and states the officer to be transferred as general manager (GM) of Air India’s medical services in the airline headquarters in New Delhi. “An airline source said, “The said officer heads a region currently and has been asked to join the medical department in Delhi to head it, pan India.”

The said officer was posted in Mumbai when the harassment complaint was filed, after which he was transferred to Hyderabad by the then chairman and managing director- Ashwani Lohani.

The airline spokesperson said, “These are internal issues on which we would not like to make any comment. Transfer of senior officers is routine administrative exercise as per administrative and operational requirements to ensure optimum utilization of human resources in sync with laid down rules and norms.”

Senior Delhi based officials said that the airline decided as their medical services department needs an officer as its current head is set to retire soon.

A senior airline official said that the medical services department is playing a key role to serve the country, in the current situation when Air India is operating repatriation flights for the government.

Capt. Mohan Ranganathan, former instructor pilot and aviation expert said, “ No employee undergoing a sexual harassment case can be promoted in any manner. The airline seems to be blatantly violating norms. Even if the concerned officer is the senior-most and is hence eligible for a promotion, he cannot be given higher responsibilities until the sexual harassment case is going on.”