Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Wednesday strongly condemned the assault on a passenger by IndiGo staff and sought a report from the DGCA. The airline admitted that it was at fault and apologised. Taking a strong note of the incident, a video clip of which went viral on Tuesday, Mr. Raju said aviation regulator DGCA would be asked to submit an independent report and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security would check whether certain procedures were violated as the incident took place in the security area.
In the morning, IndiGo promoter Rahul Bhatia held meetings with Mr. Raju and Civil Aviation Secretary R.N. Choubey. About Juby Thomas, who is seen in the video entering into a scuffle with the passenger, IndiGo said in a seven-page letter submitted to the Ministry, that there was miscommunication between the two, possibly due to very noisy ramp area. The reality was that Mr. Thomas was “only trying to ensure the safety of Mr. Katyal and prevent an accident” as he was moving towards catering high lift.
IndiGo said that Montu. Kalra, who is claiming to be the whistle blower, is the one who is shouting in the video and instructing the other two junior colleagues to prevent Mr. Katyal from boarding the bus. The airline said Mr. Kalra “instigated the incident“.
