Click to play videoNew Delhi: A day after CNN-IBN reported the plight of Rajiv Rajan, a cerebral palsy patient denied permission to fly on an Air Sahara, voices of protest are getting louder. Disability rights activists are now threatening to go to court against Air Sahara.
“They have to issue an unqualified apology. They have to responsibility and we are giving them 24 hours. I have sent a letter to the CEO of Air Sahara and we are going to wait for their response otherwise we will take appropriate action,†says Convenor, Disabled Rights Group and activist Javed Abidi.
A similar case was reported by CNN-IBN's citizen journalist Prithviraj, whose 11-year old autistic son was also not allowed to fly simply because airline authorities thought he wasn't normal.
Countries across the world have strict guidelines on who can be allowed to fly. In India, passengers who are drunk, and those who are considered a threat to passenger safety, can be prevented from boarding a flight.
There is no provision against people who are medically ill, but many people with disabilities say that incidents of discrimination are growing.
“They (airline officials) said I couldn't get onto the plane without an escort and they asked me for a fit-to-fly certificate. That's only for the medically ill, not for disabled people like me. I was afraid that they were going to push my wheelchair, so I left and they called the police,†says Raja.
“When we were traveling by Jet Airways. Similarly we were given a form, where it said that Jet Airways is not responsible for damage, any mishap or death if it happens to the passenger, and we were made to sign on it,†says a multiple sclerosis patient, S Smita.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has asked Air Sahara for an explanation. But what is needed even more is a clear set of guidelines for airline authorities, and a lot more sensitivity from airline staff.
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