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Air India blacklists Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad for assaulting staffer; FIA denies banning him
A common practice among many private airlines for safety and security reasons, this is the first time that Air India has introduced such a `blacklist` of rowdy passengers.
New Delhi: Air India on Friday blacklisted "unruly" Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad, who on Thursday created chaos by assaulted the airline staffer.
Meanwhile, the Federation of Indian Airlines dispelled reports that the Shiv Sena MP has been barred from flying.
Earlier today, the Air India blacklisted Gaikwad, a day after he had shockingly assaulted the airline staffer with his shoes and attempted to “throw him out of the aircraft". An Air India official confirmed to news agency IANS about the issuance of the order "blacklisting him with immediate effect". However, the period and other details were not yet available.
A common practice among many international and some Indian private airlines for safety and security reasons, this is the first time that the national carrier has introduced such a 'blacklist' of rowdy passengers.
Ironically, the first law-breaker who figures on the Air India 'blacklist' happens to be a law-maker from Maharashtra, a former teacher with two terms as legislator and now a first-time MP from Osmanabad district.
Later, news agency PTI quoted an FIA source as saying that the Shiv Sena MP was barred from flying by four private Indian carriers after his brazen assault on an Air India officer.
The Federation of Indian Airlines has Jet Airways, IndiGo, SpiceJet and GoAir as its members.
However, later in the day, the FIA asserted that they do not have the power to ban anyone, adding that Air India was not part of the FIA in the first place.
"We have not banned the MP. We do not have powers to ban anyone. In any case, Air India is not part of the FIA. The body represents IndiGo, Go Air, SpiceJet and Jet Airways," FIA association director Ujjwal Dey told ANI.
Meanwhile, budget carrier IndiGo today said it will support any move which bars unruly passengers from flying.
"We will support a no-fly list," IndiGo president and whole-time director Aditya Ghosh told PTI.
Yesterday, Gaikwad had repeatedly hit a 60-year-old Air India officer with sandal over being unable to travel business class despite having insisted on boarding an all-economy flight.
The national carrier has filed two FIRs against the MP, while the Shiv Sena has sought an explanation from him.
Gaikwad's grouse stemmed from the fact that he was forced to travel economy class on a Pune-New Delhi flight AI-852 though he held an open business class ticket.
He later refused to disembark from the flight at New Delhi airport for an hour, hurled abuses, indulged in violent and unruly behaviour and even tried to physically fling out the staffer from the aircraft.