IndiGo Flight Fiasco: Bahrain bound Mangaluru passengers stranded in Mumbai, luggage left behind
Mangaluru: In a recent incident that took place on December 20, the passengers of an IndiGo flight from Mangaluru to Mumbai found themselves in a distressing situation as a sequence of events led to missed connections, disrupted schedules, and stranded luggage.
The two passengers, scheduled for a connecting flight to Bahrain, were left grappling with the consequences of the airline's apparent mismanagement.
The ordeal began when the passengers were set to board the IndiGo flight from Mangaluru to Mumbai at 4:50 pm on Wednesday, December 20. However, the flight arrived late at Mangaluru Airport, departing only at 7 pm, significantly behind schedule. The tardy departure from Mangaluru set off a chain reaction of troubles for the passengers, who were rushing to make their connecting flight to Bahrain from Mumbai.
Upon arriving in Mumbai at 8:40 pm, the Bahrain-bound passengers were directed to meet IndiGo ground staff who then informed the passengers informed that they could not board the Bahrain flight because their Mangaluru flight, operated by the same carrier, had arrived late, causing them to miss the connection.
Expressing the urgency of their situation, the two passengers explained that they were on their way to attend a crucial work meeting in Bahrain and could not afford to delay their trip. Despite their pleas, the IndiGo staff remained firm in their decision, suggesting the passengers take the next day's flight to Bahrain.
The passengers while speaking to Vartha Bharati shared their ordeal and asserted that the IndiGo staff were not regrettable at all and were speaking very casually as if it was not a big deal. They reportedly continued insisting that they cannot do anything about the situation and the customers had to deal with it.
They also accused the airline of not offering any assistance, food or accomodation to compensate for the delay and inconveniences it caused to their travel plans.
With their meeting looming and no possibility of delaying their travel plans, the two passengers opted for an alternative solution. They decided to book tickets on a Qatar Airways flight, each around costing Rs. 32,000, which was scheduled to depart at 4:10 am on Thursday.
When asked for a refund, the IndiGo supervisor only assured of a partial refund request that he would make to the airline which would be processed after a few days and not immediately.
The passengers' challenges did not end with the change of flights. Upon inquiring about their luggage, which they had boarded on the IndiGo flight from Mangaluru, they were informed that their luggage was left behind in Mangaluru and had not been shipped to Mumbai.
The situation escalated further when the passengers were repeatedly told to wait for an update on their luggage. At 1:00 am, several hours after their scheduled departure, the IndiGo staff confirmed that their luggage was indeed left in Mangaluru, leaving the passengers stranded in Mumbai without their belongings.
The staff initially assured the passengers that their luggage would be delivered to Jeddah, where one of the passengers was headed after Bahrain. However, upon reaching Jeddah, the airline informed the passenger that they would need to pick up their luggage at the airport, contradicting their earlier promise of delivery.
Adding to the confusion, the airline later informed the passenger that the luggage had actually reached Bahrain, not Jeddah, as their journey with IndiGo was originally scheduled for Bahrain. This inconsistency in information left the passenger questioning the airline's reliability.
This incident comes on the heels of other reported grievances against IndiGo, including a recent complaint by comedian and actor Kapil Sharma. Sharma publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with the airline's services, vowing not to fly with them in the future.
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
