Aviation: 4 airlines including IndiGo banned standup comedian for calling journalist Arnab a coward in flight

• Kunal Kamra, a resident of Mumbai, asked Arnab questions on IndiGo flight and shared a video of it.
• Ministry of Civil Aviation said- No tolerance for travel, airlines should take action on Kunal Kamra.

NEW DELHI: 4 airlines, including standup comedian Kunal Kamarapar Indigo, who called journalist and Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami a coward on IndiGo’s flight have been banned and two others are also considering it. On IndiGo’s flight from Mumbai to Delhi, Kunal asked questions to Arnab and shared a video of it. After this, Indigo banned Kunal. The Ministry of Aviation said that disruptions in the travel of others cannot be tolerated and other airlines should also take action like IndiGo. Indigo has imposed a 6-month ban on Kunal.

After an appeal by the aviation ministry, Air India, SpiceJet and Go Air have banned Kunal. Air Asia and Vistara are also looking into the matter.

I did not endanger the safety of any passenger – Kunal

It is not at all surprising to me that 3 airlines have imposed a temporary ban on my flight due to the exercise of their right to freedom of speech. The reality is that I did not interrupt on any occasion. Nowhere has this been so, when I have not followed the directions of the cabin crew and the captain. The safety of any passengers aboard the aircraft was not endangered. If I have done any harm to anyone, it is “to the importance of journalist ‘Arnab Goswami.

Kunal reacted on Twitter to the ban. He shared the decision to be banned by SpiceJet on Twitter and wrote, “Modiji can I walk, or is it banned?” Hashtag to Vistara and wrote, “Oh ban me only man. I will not make any opinion on you. I am planning to drive and go to Goa. It takes a little break.”

Kunal asked Arnab – are you a coward or a journalist?

Kunal Kamra, who lives in Mumbai, has been critical of the government and some media channels. During IndiGo’s flight, he asked Arnab – “Are you a coward or a journalist? The audience wants to know whether you are a coward or a patriot today? Arnab, this is for the national interest. I am part of a crumbling gang. You talk about me. Deny. You should tell that the country is safe in the hands of Narendra Modi. “

Kunal shared a video of the incident and wrote, “I did this for my hero Rohit (Vemula)”. He tweeted that he was on the flight with Arnab while returning back to Mumbai from Lucknow. Even then they had tried to negotiate, but Arnab drove them away.

Aviation Minister said- we have no choice

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri retweeted IndiGo, writing, “Objectionable behavior in airlines and disrupting the travel of others cannot be tolerated.” Safety of other passengers is also taken into consideration. In such a situation, we have no choice. My advice is that the rest of the airlines should impose a similar ban. ”

Debate on airlines’ action on social media

Debates started in social media over the ban on Kamra. The issue also came on Twitter’s top trend on Wednesday. Many users also accused the airline companies of having a double attitude with passengers. A user shared an old video of a reporter from Republic Channel about how she keeps asking questions to RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav in a flight. But the action is only against the comedian. Tejaswi himself tweeted the same video.

What are the rules?

In 2017, the government set rules to ban passengers committing flights. According to this, if an airline imposes a travel ban on a passenger, then other airlines are also not obliged to do so.

3 categories of no fly list for bad behavior

• In the first category, peace-breaking behavior such as threatening gestures, literal exploitation have been placed. If convicted, a passenger can be banned for up to 3 months.
• In the second category, it includes physical abuse such as pushing, kicking feet, gripping, sexual exploitation or touching the wrong way. On doing so, a passenger can be banned for up to 6 months.
• The third category included such behavior which threatens the life of cabin staff. It can be banned for 2 years or more.