IAS officer’s wife, airlines staffer in slap row at IGI

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 28

Haryana IAS officer Praveen Kumar’s wife Poonam was today embroiled in an unsavory controversy at the Indira Gandhi International Airport when she allegedly slapped a woman staff member of the airliner, who also retaliated and slapped her.

Kumar, Director General in the Haryana Archives Department, is presently deputed as Observer in the Gujarat polls. His wife Poonam, who was to join him in Ahmedabad today, reached the IGI Airport to catch a flight for Ahmedabad at 5 am.

However, the woman staffer on duty at the check-in centre informed Poonam that she could not get the boarding pass since she was late. After an argument, she was directed to the Air India duty manager. A heated exchange soon ensued and the IAS officer’s wife allegedly slapped the lady airline staffer, who hit her back. The airline staffer’s spectacles were broken. The two later apologised to each and the matter was “amicably resolved”, the police said.

An Air India spokesperson said, “A passenger was told by a counter staff that she will not be able to check-in because she was late for the flight. This led to an argument and the staff directed her to the duty manager, and there was an argument.”

Air India check-in counters close 45 minutes before the scheduled departure for domestic flights. Passengers are required to report 75 minutes before their flight. 

Praveen Kumar, when contacted, said his wife had reached Ahmedabad. “My wife was not at fault. She had arrived at the airport well in time, but was refused the boarding pass. Even I requested the staff to allow her by issuing manual boarding pass, but they refused. The staff member to whom my wife was taken to ordered that she be thrown out of his cabin. It was at this stage that the incident took place. But things are over now and the airlines allowed her to travel on the same tickets,” he said.