The Supreme Court Today (Nov 26) called for creative ways to deal with unruly air passengers, while asking the authorities to consider modifying the existing guidelines in accordance with the international norms. The Bench was hearing a plea moved by a 72-year-old woman who was urinated on by a man on board an Air India flight in 2022. “Something creative will have to be done. May be strategic seating or something,” the Court remarked.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday emphasized the need for innovative strategies to manage unruly passengers aboard flights. The Court also suggested revisiting existing guidelines to align them with international standards, underscoring the urgency of addressing the issue.
A Bench comprising Justice B.R. Gavai and Justice K.V. Viswanathan was hearing a plea filed by a 72-year-old woman who was subjected to an appalling incident in 2022 when a fellow passenger urinated on her during an Air India flight.
“Something creative will have to be done. May be strategic seating or something,”
-remarked the Bench during the proceedings, highlighting the necessity for inventive approaches to prevent such incidents.
Justice Viswanathan Shares Personal Experience of Flight Misconduct
During the hearing, Justice Viswanathan recounted a troubling incident from his own experience involving intoxicated passengers.
“Recently when me and Justice Surya Kant were flying, there were two totally drunk male passengers. One locked himself in toilet and slept while other went out with vomit bag. All-women crew. So they did not open the toilet so one of my co-passengers had to,”
-he revealed, shedding light on the challenges faced by flight crew and co-passengers in such situations.
Court Seeks Updated Guidelines
While adjourning the matter for eight weeks, the Supreme Court directed Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati to instruct relevant authorities to evaluate and amend the guidelines concerning unruly passengers in compliance with global aviation norms.
This direction comes as part of the Court’s ongoing scrutiny of the issue. In May 2023, the Court had sought a response from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to the 72-year-old petitioner’s plea for stricter regulations on passenger misconduct.
The 2022 Air India Incident and Its Fallout
The 2022 incident, which served as the catalyst for the plea, gained widespread attention when the petitioner, a senior citizen, penned a letter to the Chairperson of the Tata Group detailing her traumatic experience.
The accused, Shankar Mishra, reportedly inebriated at the time, urinated on her during an international flight on November 26, 2022.
The letter, which eventually reached the media, sparked outrage and prompted action. Mishra was arrested by the Delhi Police in Bengaluru and faced both legal and professional repercussions.
His employer, Wells Fargo, issued a statement condemning the allegations as “deeply disturbing” and terminated his employment shortly thereafter.
Legal and Regulatory Developments
In response to the incident, the Delhi High Court in March 2023 directed the DGCA to establish an appellate committee within two weeks. This committee was tasked with hearing Mishra’s appeal against the decision designating him as an “unruly passenger” and imposing a four-month flying ban.
The Supreme Court’s recent intervention builds on this regulatory push, signaling the judiciary’s commitment to ensuring safer skies for all passengers.
By urging both creative solutions and globally aligned guidelines, the Court has reinforced the importance of addressing the issue of in-flight misconduct with urgency and innovation.
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