Didn't find Kunal Kamra's behaviour unruly: IndiGo captain

The pilot of the IndiGo flight on which comedian Kunal Kamra heckled journalist Arnab Goswami has taken exception to the flying ban imposed on the artiste saying his behaviour onboard was unsavoury but could not be deemed unruly.

The pilot, in communication with the airline, also pointed out that there have been incidents of similar or worse in nature which was not deemed unruly.

The pilot said he was disheartened that the airline had taken action against Kamra solely on the basis of social media reports and without consulting him.

IndiGo had barred Kamra from flying the airline after Tuesday's altercation with Goswami and advised other passengers to guard against personal slander while on an aircraft.

The incident spiralled into a controversy when Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri supported IndiGo's actions and asked other airlines to follow suit. Soon after, Kamra was barred from flying by Air India, SpiceJet and GoAir.

Questions were also raised on IndiGo's action of handing out a six-month ban on Kamra, which was not as per the rules prescribed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

After the outcry, IndiGo said that it had taken cognisance of the letter of the pilot and set up an internal committee that has begun an investigation into the incident.

Under fire for asking airlines to act against Kamra, the civil aviation minister said he had expressed his views on the unruly behaviour of a passenger on board the IndiGo flight.

“I reiterate that Airlines must ensure 'Zero Tolerance' for any activity which has the potential to jeopardize safety of Passengers in an Aircraft,” Puri said.