For some time now, the top guns at Air-India have been slinging mud at each other. On Tuesday, it turned out that some of it hasn't stuck. Three days before he retires, Michael Mascrenhas, A-I's suspended managing director, was given a clean chit by the CBI, which was investigating whether he had shown undue favour to a particular firm. The top secret report the CBI sent to the Civil Aviation Ministry on Tuesday, recommends that "no action" be taken against Mascrenhas, while suggesting "departmental action" (as opposed to criminal proceedings) against three other officers.
They are: former commercial director, H S Oberoi, deputy commercial director, K Behari and regional director, United Kingdom, P K Sinha. The agency was conducting a preliminary enquiry into whether A-I had paid excess commission to its London general sales agent (GSA) Welcome Travels.