Techie harasses attendant on Dubai-Hyderabad flight, leaves ‘obscene’ note for crew

A passenger was held for allegedly harassing a female flight attendant on board an Air India flight from Dubai to Hyderabad, police said on Sunday.

The flyer, a software engineer and a native of Kerala, allegedly touched the woman while she was providing services, RGI Airport police station Inspector Kankaiah Samapathi told PTI.

The cabin crew noticed that the passenger, reportedly in his 30s, was under the influence of alcohol/ intoxicated. After the flight landed, the matter was reported to the ground staff and the captain, police told PTI. Following this, the cabin crew lodged a complaint, and the passenger, among others, was booked for sexual harassment.

Also Read | Drunk passenger misbehaves with crew on Dubai-Jaipur Air India Express flight

Crew found note with ‘obscene’ remarks on flyer’s seat

Upon landing, the passenger claimed that he had misplaced his passport on his seat onboard the flight. The flight crew, on hearing this, went to search for the flyer’s passport.

However, they found a note on the seat containing “obscene and abusive” remarks, which were allegedly targeted at the crew members, PTI reported.

On the basis of the flight crew’s complaint, a case was then registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against the accused, including Section 74 (assault or use of criminal force against a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty), and Section 75 (sexual harassment).

The accused was arrested and produced before a local court, which remanded him to judicial custody, police said.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation had, earlier this year in June, released a circular for the procedure of reporting incidents involving unruly passengers.

The DGCA said that information regarding these incidents must be “immediately reported by the Chief of Flight Safety/ Director Cabin Safety (In Flight Services) within 12 hours via email.” It further stated that “detailed written information should be submitted to DGCA within 24 hours of the landing of the aircraft as per the enclosed Performa.”