Air India urges stern action on MP

Mumbai: Air India and the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) that include IndiGo, Jet Airways, SpiceJet and Go Air, today condemned the assault on an Air India staffer by Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad yesterday. The airlines demand that strict action be taken against the MP by law enforcement agencies. In a statement, FIA Associate Director Ujjwal Dey said they believed that assault on any one of their employees is an assault on all of them and on ordinary law abiding citizens of the country who work hard to earn a living.

The Air India and the FIA member airlines have decided to ban the Sena MP from flying on all their flights with immediate effect, he added. "We believe that exemplary action should be taken in such incidents to protect employee morale and public safety," he said. In the interest of the safety and security of colleagues and other customers, they also proposed the promulgation of a "no fly" list which shall include the names of all unruly passengers.

Such customers are not welcome on their carriers and they seek the support of the government and security agencies to enforce such a "no fly" list, Mr Dey pointed out. Meanwhile, Air India has cancelled a ticket of Mr Gaikwad, which was from Pune to Mumbai. (UNI)