The victim of the Air India urinating case has filed a PIL before the Supreme Court, seeking directions to the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and airline companies to develop regulations to deal with incidents of passenger misbehaviour on board aircrafts.
The petitioner also asked the Court to order the media to postpone reporting on the occurrence since it prejudices both the victim and the accused.
According to the petition, the DGCA failed to handle the petitioner with care and responsibility when an unruly passenger urinated on her following heavy alcohol consumption.
“The rights to a free and fair trial have also been significantly harmed as a result of the petitioner’s selective leak of the AIR SEWA complaint, the FIR, and selective witness statements being released to the media to match a specific narrative,” the petition filed through advocate Rahul Narayan stated.
The petition cited seven instances of passenger misbehaviour on board from 2014 to 2023 that were not adequately addressed by the airline.
The petition emphasised that a similar occurrence occurred on March 4, 2023, when a passenger urinated while drunk aboard an American Airlines trip from New York to New Delhi. The airplane operator called Air Traffic Control, who subsequently notified the Central Industrial Security Force, resulting in the arrest of the individual upon disembarking.
As a result, the petitioner requested that the Court grant the following orders:
- Direct Centre and the DGCA to ensure that CAR regulations adhere to the highest standards laid down internationally;
- Direct DGCA and airline companies to ensure that airline crew and employees adhere to the legal obligations of SoPs during such occurrences.
- Direct media to postpone reporting on the ongoing criminal case in relation to the event.
