IndiGo's defence on passenger manhandling treads a fine line between self-defence and assault

After Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju asked for a report from DGCA following a case of manhandling of a passenger by IndiGo airlines' staff, IndiGo President Aditya Ghosh has written a letter to the ministry giving a detailed account of the incident.

In the letter, Ghosh regrets the turn of events saying the staff's response to the situation was completely out of line and did not reflect well on the company's customer service policy. More importantly, Ghosh puts up a defence on the airline's action on the case so far.

There are three IndiGo staff members who get a mention in Ghosh's letter - Montu Kalra, Juby Thomas and Sahiv Sharma. These are the people involved in the incident. IndiGo has terminated only Montu Kalra's contract. Juby Thomas and Sahiv Sharma have been issued warning letters.

JUBY THOMAS

In the letter, Ghosh explains that Juby Thomas wanted to stop the passenger Rajeev Katyal from 'inadvertently' walking towards a 'live ground equipment' and prevent a mishap. When Thomas shouted to make himself audible in a noisy surrounding, Mr Katyal used a cuss word at Thomas and asked him to go do his own work, which seemed to have triggered the brawl.

"The irony of the fact is that Juby Thomas was indeed doing his work and ensuring safety of passengers," Ghosh writes in the letter. Further in the letter, Ghosh says that Thomas followed the procedure and informed the supervisor about the incident.

"Juby Thomas is the one who raised this issue with his supervisor as per IndiGo's standard operating procedure and brought this incident to the attention of the company," Ghosh said.

It is important to note, Thomas is seen pinning Kalra down in the video. Sharing screenshot from the video, Ghosh in the letter states that Thomas in "self-defence tries to distance him from Mr Katyal by extending his hand and placing it on Mr Katyal's collar bone."

However, Ghosh acknowledges Thomas' action was out of line regardless of the provocation or if in self-defence. He has been issued a final warning letter.

MONTU KALRA

Ghosh's letter primarily puts the blame for the incident on Montu Kalra, who has been expelled. Ghosh claims that Kalra instigated the incident by instructing Thomas and the other Indigo staff in the video Sahiv Sharma to stop Rajeev Katyal from boarding the bus.

Ghosh categorically states that Kalra was not terminated because he shot the video or for bringing it to the airline's attention. Ghosh's letter states that he provoked Mr Kalra further by beginning to shoot the video on his mobile phone, instead of letting him board the bus.

SAHIV SHARMA

Sahiv Sharma holds Mr Katyal and separates him from an altercation with Juby Thomas. He is seen smiling into the camera while separating the two. Ghosh in his letter writes this is "not something IndiGo would expect from its employees given the seriousness of the situation".

Sharma has been issued a letter of warning. Read the full letter here.