Zero tolerance for such behaviour: Scindia after IndiGo stops child with special needs from boarding

In a very shameless incident, IndiGo had stopped a specially-abled child and his parents from boarding a Hyderabad-bound flight at the Ranchi airport on Saturday.

 

 

 

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has promised appropriate action against such allegations. Scindia said there was zero tolerance for such discriminatory behaviour by airline staff, adding that he was looking into the matter personally.

 

“There is zero tolerance towards such behaviour. No human being should have to go through this! Investigating the matter by myself, post which appropriate action will be taken,” the minister tweeted in response to a flyer’s post complaining about the incident.

 

 

The incident was brought to light on a Twitter post by a passenger who was traveling on the same flight. The passenger said the airlines did not permit a special needs child and his parents to board a flight for not displaying “normal” behavior. The child had an uncomfortable ride by car to the airport, however, his parents had calmed him down.

 

Later, when an Indigo staff came to know about this, he warned the family that the child would not be allowed to board the plane unless he acted 'normally'. According to co-passengers, there were doctors taking the same flight and they assured them of full support. But eventually, the IndiGo flight departed to Hyderabad, leaving the three behind.

 

After the tweet went viral, IndiGo issued a statement claiming the specially abled child could not have boarded the flight in 'a state of panic'.

"The ground staff waited for him to calm down till the last minute, but to no avail. The airline made the family comfortable by providing them hotel stay and the family flew next morning to their destination. We regret the inconvenience caused to the passengers," the statement read.