JOIN USDGCA asks IndiGo for report on 'safety violation' by mediapersons on flight with Kangana Ranaut onboard
The IndiGo flight ferrying actor Kangana Ranaut from Chandigarh to Mumbai on Wednesday has come under the glare of civil aviation regulator DGCA for violation of safety and physical distancing protocols.
Videos from inside the flight, posted on social media, showed media persons milling around Ranaut’s seat for a comment from the actor, who is at the centre of a political row over her remarks targeting the Shiv Sena.
“We have seen some videos wherein media persons are standing too close to each other in the 6E264 flight on Wednesday. It seems to be a violation of safety and social distancing protocols. We have asked IndiGo to submit a report on this incident,” said a DGCA official.
In a statement, IndiGo said it had submitted a statement to the DGCA regarding the matter pertaining to flight 6E-264 from Chandigarh to Mumbai on September 9,2020.
“We would like to reiterate that our cabin crew, as well as the captain, followed all the requisite protocols, including announcements to restrict photography, follow social distancing and maintain overall safety,” the airline said.
IndiGo said it had also followed the requisite protocol of documenting this matter in the post-flight report.
In the videos on social media, reporters and camera persons were seen making videos inside the flight where Ranaut was seated in one of the front rows.
Most of the reporters were without masks, which are a prerequisite during the entire duration of the flight in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
In January, stand-up comic Kunal Kamra was banned from flying by several airlines after he had confronted Republic TV founder Arnab Goswami on a IndiGo flight.
In response to Kamra’s actions, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri had said that “offensive behavior designed to provoke and create disturbance inside an aircraft is absolutely unacceptable and endangers safety of air travellers”.