New Delhi: Furious at being seated in the economy section of an aircraft with no business seats, Shiv Sena Lok Sabha MP from Osmanabad Ravindra Gaikwad beat up an Air India staffer "25 times" with his sandals and tried to throw him out of the aircraft on landing in Delhi on Thursday.
The unprecedented assault, which added one more chapter to the Sena's long record of violence, took place when Gaikwad flew AI 852 from Pune to Delhi to attend the on going Parliament session.
AI has filed two police complaints against the MP-one for assaulting its staffer and the other for wrongly holding up the aircraft for 40 minutes. The carrier is also mulling its own no-fly list where unruly flyers like Gaikwad can be barred from getting on planes again.
The first-time MP, who has previously had two terms as an MLA, had an open (undated) business class ticket and wanted to travel on this flight. His staff was clearly told in advance that AI 852 was an all-economy flight. But since Gaikwad wanted to take this flight, he was allotted a front row seat.
Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad on Thursday assaulted an AI staffer as he was upset he was given a seat in the economy class. Trouble broke out after the plane that had taken off from Pune landed in Delhi at 9.35am.
All passengers embarked from the plane except the Sena MP. Sukumar Raman, 60, was among the AI staffers who then tried to get Gaikwad off the plane. The Airbus A-320 was supposed to fly to Goa at 10.55am after cleaning and catering.
"(I told him) 115 passengers were waiting to board the aircraft, but he wanted the top management inside the aircraft. (On saying that's not possible) he became very abusive and used foul language...
" He started beating me and took out his slippers and started hitting me. He also tried to throw me out (of the aircraft) from the step ladder, but the staff prevented him from doing so.
" Broke my specs and tore button of cardigan, and humiliated me in front of staff.God save our country if this is the culture and behaviour of our MPs," Sukumar said in his written complaint to the airline. Sukumar has also filed a police complaint.
AI's own report on the episode says: "Gaikwad had got very upset when Sukumar sa id that he was an elected representative of the people and should conduct himself accordingly.
Reacting to this, Gaikwad took out his slipper and hit Sukumar... pushed him out of the aircraft exit door.Crew members intervened and physically restrained Gaikwad from causing further harm to Sukumar."
An unrepentant MP told the media: "Ek baar nahin, pachchees baar mara (with sandals). I am not a BJP MP .I am a Shiv Sena MP and will not tolerate any insult. Wo French dadhi (Sukumar) bola PM se complain karega. Let him complain. I will complain to the speaker and other authorities."
Gaikwad, incidentally , was also part of the 11-member Sena group of MPs who were allegedly involved in force-feeding a fasting Muslim canteen supervisor at the Maharashtra Sadan in 2014 over complaints of poor-quality food.
AI is now examining the possibility of having its own no-fly list to bar unruly people from taking to the skies. Aviation minister Jayant Sinha tweeted: "Unruly behaviour and violence on our aviation network is regrettable. Each such incident will be investigated and appropriate action taken."
This, however, is not the first time elected representatives have misbehaved with AI staff. In November 2015, a YSR Congress MP had slapped an AI station manager at Tirupati airport for refusing to accept him and his relatives on a flight for which boarding had been closed.
The MP and his entourage had reached the Tirupati airport 20 to 25 minutes before flight departure time while boarding counters for domestic flights close 45 minutes before departure.
And a Bihar politician had in 2015 misbehaved with an air hostess of a private airline.The scared air hostess did not file a complaint against the MP but gave the same to the airline. The airline did not act on that as it said the employee must file a complaint with the police.
