Shivraj Singh Chouhan slams Air India for 'broken, sunken' seat; airline apologises

Chouhan said he assumed Air India's service would have improved after being taken over by the Tata management, but he was mistaken.

New Delhi: Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday targeted Air India for allotting him a "broken and sunken" seat, describing it as an "unethical" practice by the airline to make fliers sit on "bad and uncomfortable" seats after charging them full amount.

The airline apologised to the Minister and assured him that they will ensure such things do not happen.

Chouhan was flying from Bhopal to Delhi for official engagements, including inaugurating the Kisan Mela in PUSA and later holding a meeting of the Natural Farming Mission in Haryana's Kurukshetra and discussions with farmer representatives in Chandigarh.

Taking to 'X', the minister said he had booked a ticket on the flight AI436 and was allotted seat number 8C. "I went and sat on the seat, the seat was broken and sunken in. It was uncomfortable to sit," he said.

When he asked the airline crew why the seat was allotted to him if it was bad, Chouhan said that they told him the management had been informed earlier that this seat was not good and its ticket should not be sold.

"My co-passengers requested me to change my seat and sit on a better seat but why should I bother another person for my sake, I decided that I would complete my journey by sitting on this same seat," he said.

He said his impression was that Air India's service would have improved after Tata took over the management but it turned out to be a "misconception".

"I don't care about discomfort in sitting but it is unethical to make passengers sit on bad and uncomfortable seats after charging them full amount. Isn't this cheating the passengers? Will the Air India management take steps to ensure that no passenger faces such inconvenience in future or will it continue to take advantage of the passengers' compulsion to reach their destination early?" he asked.

Responding to the Minister, the airline said, "Dear Sir, we apologise for the inconvenience caused. Please be rest assured that we are looking into this matter carefully to prevent any such occurrences in the future. We would appreciate the opportunity to speak with you, kindly DM us a convenient time to connect."