Last update:November 27, 2024, 00:02 IST

The Supreme Court was hearing a plea filed by a 73-year-old woman, on whom a male co-passenger allegedly urinated while drunk on board an Air India flight in November 2022.

The SC asked the Center to direct the authorities concerned to review and amend the existing guidelines on unruly passengers accordingly, in accordance with international standards. (Image: News18/File)

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Center and aviation regulator DGCA to develop more comprehensive guidelines to control unruly air passengers and observed that “something creative” needs to be done.

A bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan was hearing a plea filed by a 73-year-old woman, on whom a male co-passenger allegedly urinated while drunk on board an Air India flight in November 2022.

The septuagenarian sought instructions from the Centre, DGCA and all air carriers to develop a standard operating procedure (SOP) to deal with similar incidents. The court, hearing the plea, asked Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati to direct the authorities concerned to review and amend the existing guidelines on unruly passengers accordingly, in accordance with international standards.

Justice Viswanathan shared his own experience while traveling with Justice Surya Kant when they faced a similar incident. “We had a recent experience. Two passengers were completely drunk. One of them went to the bathroom and fell asleep. The other one who was outside had a vomit bag. The crew was all women and for about 30-35 minutes no one could open the door. The crew then asked my co-passenger to open the door and take him to the seat. It was a 2 hour 40 minute flight,” he said.

In May 2023, the Supreme Court issued notices to the Centre, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and all airlines, including Air India, regarding the woman’s plea.

During the hearing, the woman’s lawyer argued that the DGCA had filed a response stating that everything was in place but the petitioner had suggestions which could be incorporated. Bhati, appearing for the Centre, informed the bench that an affidavit had been filed and guidelines and circulars had been notified to control unruly passengers.

The woman filed a PIL in March 2023, claiming that she was forced to move the court as Air India and the DGCA failed to treat her with care and responsibility after the unpleasant experience. The woman cited seven cases of passenger misconduct on board between 2014 and 2023, alleging they were not handled properly by the airline concerned.

The PIL has sought direction from the Center and the DGCA to ensure that the standards of civil aviation requirements meet the highest standards set at the international level. The lack of clear guidelines for the media on what requires reporting, whether they must make guesses when cases are pending, and the impact of media coverage based on unverified statements ends up having a impact on the victim as well as the accused, he adds.

The petitioner stated that her intentions were inspired and motivated by the interest of the general public and constituted a sincere attempt to put in place a framework within the airline industry to prevent similar incidents and deal with them in a manner that does not would not cause additional trauma to passengers.

The woman sought instructions from the DGCA and airlines to comply with the legal requirements of SOPs, operations manuals and reporting protocols to be followed by airline crew and staff.

On January 31, 2023, a Delhi court granted bail to Shankar Mishra, the accused in this case, on personal and surety bond. He was subject to various conditions, including not tampering with evidence, influencing witnesses or communicating with them in any way.

Mishra was also asked not to leave the country without the permission of the court and to join the investigation and trial whenever summoned by the investigating officer or the court concerned.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)