'It's Turkish, throw it out': Sushant Sareen blasts Çelebi as ex-NATO officer denies Erdogan family link

As tensions deepen over Turkey's support to Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack and India's Operation Sindoor, senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) Sushant Sareen has called for the complete removal of Turkish aviation firm Çelebi from India.

"It's a Turkish company and that's a good enough reason to throw them out. Turks support terrorists, they are not a friendly country. Turkey is involved in hostile anti-India propaganda and is involved in sinister activity to incite and instigate and indoctrinate Indian Muslims. Indians are not safe in Turkey and there is no reason why these terrorists should be given business in India. Go to Pakistan and get whatever you can from that bankrupt country," Sareen said.

Sareen's remarks come amid public heat on Çelebi NAS Airport Services, which handles approximately 70% of ground operations at Mumbai airport and operates across nine Indian cities, including Delhi, Hyderabad, Cochin, and Chennai. The company also manages sensitive functions such as passenger control, cargo, postal services, ramp operations, and flight load balancing at major airports.

The backlash intensified after Shiv Sena leader Murji Patel led a delegation to Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL), demanding that Çelebi's services be terminated in light of Turkey’s alignment with Pakistan. Aviation consultant Sanjay Lazar noted that Çelebi was given security clearance during the UPA era, post-26/11, and faced opposition from trade unions even then. “Since then, whenever the issue has surfaced due to India-Turkey problems, they have tried to cover up their Turkish ownership,” Lazar tweeted.

In response to speculation that Çelebi is linked to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s family, Harun Reşit Aydin, a former NATO intelligence officer, clarified: "If you want to tell something, then at least get some facts correct. Çelebi aviation isn't owned by any daughter of Erdoğan. It's a 1958-established well-known multinational company belonging to the family of the founder Ali Cavit Çelebioğlu and handles major airports worldwide."

Çelebi isn't the only Turkish entity under scrutiny. IndiGo, India's largest airline, has faced public backlash for its code share agreements with Turkish Airlines and Corendon Airlines, and for leasing aircraft from Turkish firms. Air India Express, too, is facing criticism after it signed a maintenance contract with Turkish Technic in February for its Boeing 737 fleet.