The petitioner has sought an SOP to cope with unruly fliers. (Representational)
New Delhi:
Listening to a petition for powerful guidelines to deal with unruly fliers, a Supreme Court docket choose in the present day narrated his current encounter with drunk co-passengers. Justice KV Viswanathan mentioned he and Justice Surya Kant had been just lately on a flight on which two male passengers had been “completely drunk”. “Lately when me and Justice Surya Kant had been flying. There have been two completely drunk male passengers. One locked himself in the bathroom and slept, different went out with a vomit bag. (There was an) all-women crew, so they didn’t open the bathroom. So one in all my co-passengers needed to,” the choose mentioned.
Justice Viswanathan mentioned “one thing inventive” should be performed to deal with this difficulty. “Perhaps strategic seating or one thing.” The matter has been adjourned by eight weeks and Further Solicitor Common Aiswarya Bhati was requested to instruct authorities involved to look at and modify tips to handle unruly fliers in step with world practices.
The bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice KV Viswanathan was listening to a petition by an aged lady who suffered a harrowing expertise throughout a New York-New Delhi flight final yr when a drunk passenger allegedly urinated on her. The petitioner has demanded a Customary Operation Process (SOP) to cope with such fliers.
The 72-year-old has mentioned in her petition that she determined to strategy the courtroom as a result of Air India and the Directorate Common of Civil Aviation did not deal with her with care and accountability after the incident.
“As well as, the wide-ranging nationwide press reportage filled with conjecture and surmises has severely undermined the petitioner’s rights as a sufferer below Article 21 of the Structure, and in equity has additionally affected the rights of the accused as effectively. Their rights to a free and honest trial have additionally been considerably affected attributable to a selective leaking of the ‘AIR SEWA’ criticism of the petitioner, the FIR and selective witness statements being launched to the media to match particular narratives,” the petition mentioned. It mentioned an absence of clear tips for media retailers on what requires reporting, whether or not they must make conjectures the place issues are sub-judice, and the affect of media protection based mostly on unverified statements find yourself impacting the sufferer and the accused.
The petitioner additional mentioned her intentions had been impressed and motivated within the curiosity of most of the people and are a honest try to arrange a framework inside the airline business in order that such incidents are prevented, and in the event that they do happen, they’re handled in a fashion that doesn’t trigger extra trauma to the passengers.