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Government in a fix as Sena protests flying ban on Ravindra Gaikwad

Sources say that the government is finding it difficult to strike a balance between the rights of parliamentarians and those of the airlines to ensure safe journey.

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Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad
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The ban by major airlines on Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad for unruly behaviour has put the government in a fix. Sources say that the government is finding it difficult to strike a balance between the rights of parliamentarians and those of the airlines to ensure safe journey.

After high drama in Parliament on Monday, the impression came out that the ban against Gaikwad may be revoked but intervention from top levels in the government made the civil aviation ministry to rethink the proposal. The message, which had come was that the government should not appear as supporting the unruly behaviour of the MP.

However, at the same time, the government is aware that the issue may snowball into a major fight within airline unions as Shiv Sena has its own union in the aviation sector, and has already given a veiled threat to government.

Surprisingly, earlier in the day, politicians across party lines supported the ban on Gaikwad even as Shiv Sena MPs demanded its revocation. Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan also suggested a rethink on the ban, commenting that a Member of Parliament cannot take a train every time he/she has to attend Parliament. After her intervention, sources within the Civil Aviation Ministry suggested that without compromising on the safety, they were considering amending the Civil Aviation Requirement or CAR rules to “balance service and safety requirements” and restrict the powers of airlines to ban passengers.

But by evening, it looked that the government was developing cold feet and didn’t want to intervene in haste, leaving it to the airlines to take a decision.

Gaikwad was banned by all airlines on Friday for assaulting an Air India staffer and was left with no option but to take a train for his return journey from Delhi to Maharashtra. According to 2014 CAR rules, airlines are empowered to prevent entry of passengers, but their powers to do so may be restricted if the government decides, they added. It is under these rules that Air India and five other airlines had imposed a flying ban upon Gaikwad.  The rules empower airlines to ban any passenger for unruly behaviour.  A  senior Civil Aviation Ministry official told DNA that the government will work towards making some changes in the CAR rules, which were issued back in November 2014. The revised norms would provide more clarity on preventive measures that can be initiated against any unruly passenger, the official said.

However, highly placed sources said that late in the evening, the Civil Aviation Minister P Ashok Gajapati Raju was informed by Prime Minister's Office that the minister should ensure that a wrong message should not go to public and he should not rush in the matter. Raju is believed to have been told to take a balanced decision to ensure that both rights of MPs and rights of airlines are taken care of.  A close aide of Raju said that the PMO’s message has put the minister in a spot, and that he would now take a decision in the matter only after holding discussions with his cabinet colleagues. 

The murmurs about government mulling a change in rules started coming in soon after Shiv Sena MPs denounced the ban on Gaikwad and demanded its revocation. The uproar even prompted Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra
Mahajan to suggest an amicable resolution of the issue. Shiv Sena’s leader in the House Anandrao Adsul claimed the ban violated the Constitution and the law. Members of the Shiv Sena, a partner in the ruling National Democratic Alliance, even engaged in a verbal duel with Congress MPs who criticised Gaikwad for his action.

In Parliament, Raju condemned Gaikwad’s act, and said violence of any kind on an aircraft could prove disastrous. He said, “I never in my wildest dreams thought that an MP will get caught in such an incident.”

However, later in the day, it was believed that Raju softened his stand and pitched for an “amicable resolution” of the issue after Speaker Mahajan held an hour-long meeting with 10 Sena MPs and Raju.

The news of government amending the rules to pacify Gaikwad created a disquiet among the airlines.

Insiders in Air India said they would be disappointed if government amends rules but said they said they would be left with no option but to follow government’s directives.

Meanwhile, the Crime branch of Delhi Police on Monday recorded the statement of Air India (AI) staffer, R Sukumar who was assualted by Shiv Sena Member of Parliament (MP) Ravindra Gaikwad. A team of Crime
Branch officials reached the Terminal 3 at the Indira Gandhi International Airport and recorded the statement of Sukumar along with 14 other officials. The police officials spent around six hours at the airport trying to establish the sequence of events. The police officials have also asked the airline company to provide the raw footage which was made inside the aircraft and any other CCTV footage from the cameras installed at the airport.

The Air India staffer in his complaint told the police that he was assaulted by the MP when he asked him to de-board the aircraft. Sukumar spoke in English and was later asked by the MP to speak in Hindi. When he spoke in Hindi he was hit with a slipper by the MP. The aircraft had to take off to Goa but was delayed by 40 minutes. Due to the scuffle the buttons of the cardign Sukumar was wearing and his spectacles were damaged.

A case in connection with the incident was registered u/s 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 355 (assault or criminal force with intent to dishonour person) of  the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

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