In an incident on Monday morning, an air passenger was apprehended for assaulting a pilot on an IndiGo aircraft at the Delhi airport while the pilot was announcing a delay in take-off. The assailant, identified as Sahil Kataria, was captured in a video that has since gone viral on social media, depicting him rushing towards a co-pilot and striking him in the face. The accused, wearing a yellow jacket, carried out the assault during the pilot's announcement inside the aircraft. Promptly, Kataria was de-boarded and handed over to the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).
A fellow passenger on the same flight, IndiGo 6E-2175 traveling from Delhi to Goa, claimed that despite enduring a delay of over 12 hours, the co-pilot aggravated the situation by attributing blame to the passengers. This claim was made in an interview with India Today TV, wherein the passenger shared the challenging experience of remaining inside the aircraft for an extended period while the co-pilot allegedly accused passengers of causing further delays for ground staff.
The incident has sparked diverse reactions on social media, with some advocating punitive measures against the accused passenger, while others underscore the frustration among passengers, citing a series of complaints against IndiGo, including cancellations and excessive delays.
IndiGo, in response, stated that the incident is being referred to an independent internal committee for appropriate action, including the potential inclusion of the accused passenger on the 'no-fly list' as per regulatory guidelines. The flight eventually took off from Delhi at 6 pm after a delay exceeding 10 hours, as reported by the flight tracking website flightradar24.
The co-pilot, Anup Kumar, lodged a complaint with the Delhi Police against the unruly passenger, leading to the registration of an FIR in the case. Subsequently, the passenger was taken to a police station and subsequently placed under arrest. The airline is actively pursuing internal and regulatory measures to address the incident and ensure appropriate consequences for the assailant.
