Pragya Thakur was on wheelchair, refused to move to non-emergency row causing delay: SpiceJet
New Delhi: SpiceJet on Sunday clarified that BJP MP Pragya Thakur was asked by the crew on Delhi-Bhopal flight to move to a non-emergency row seat as she was on a wheelchair but she refused, causing the flight to delay.
While some restless passengers requested Thakur to change her seat from emergency row to non-emergency row, a few others requested the crew to offload her as she was refusing to change the seat, according to the airline's spokesperson.
Ultimately, the BJP MP from Bhopal acquiesced and moved to the seat on non-emergency row. According to a source, the flight got delayed by approximately 45 minutes due to this matter.
The clarification came a day after Thakur complained that the private airline denied her the seat she had booked on the flight. Thakur, an accused in the Malegaon blasts case, had pre-booked seat 1A on SG2489 flight and had come to the Delhi airport in her own wheelchair on Saturday.
When reporters approached her outside the Bhopal airport, she alleged the airline staff "do not behave properly with passengers".
"They did not give me the booked seat. I asked them to show the rules. I called the director and lodged a complaint with him," she had said.
The SpiceJet spokesperson said, "The Delhi-Bhopal flight is operated by Bombardier Q400 aircraft (78 seater). On this aircraft, the first row is the emergency row seat and is not allocated to passengers on wheelchairs.
"As the BJP MP had come with her own wheelchair and had not booked through the airline, the staff wasn't aware of this fact that she was a wheelchair passenger."
"She was requested by the crew to shift to 2 A/B (non-emergency row) due to safety reasons but she refused. The duty manager and other staff also requested her to move to another seat," the spokesperson said.
She asked for the safety instruction document wherein the exit door policy is mentioned and the same was shown to her to provide clarity, according to the budget carrier's spokesperson.
"As the flight was getting delayed other passengers were becoming restless and requested Hon'ble Smt. Thakur to change her seat but she refused. Other passengers also requested the airline staff to offload Hon'ble Smt. Thakur as she refused to change her seat," said the spokesperson.
"Finally, Hon'ble Smt. Pragya Thakur agreed to change her seat from 1A to 2B and the flight departed. We regret for the inconvenience caused. However, safety of our passengers is paramount at SpiceJet," the spokesperson added.
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Hemant Karkare killed by RSS-linked cop, not Kasab: Maharashtra LoP Vijay Wadettiwar
BJP writes to ECI for action against Cong leader Wadettiwar for 'defaming' Ujjwal Nikam
Mumbai, May 5: The BJP has written to the Election Commission of India seeking action against Congress and the opposition leader, Vijay Wadettiwar, for allegedly peddling lies and defaming its Mumbai North Central nominee and ex-26/11 prosecution lawyer Ujjwal Nikam.
Wadettiwar, the leader of the opposition in the Maharashtra legislative assembly, purportedly called Nikam an "anti-national" and accused him of hiding the information that then Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare wasn't killed by Kasab's bullet during the 26/11 terror attack, but fell to a bullet of a policeman affiliated to RSS.
His allegations were based on the book "Who Killed Karkare" written by retired police officer SM Mushriff.
"As a responsible leader, the opposition leader should desist from making such comments that can help the enemy nation," Nikam said.
Terming Wadettiwar's statements as "false and not based on facts", Mumbai BJP president Ashish Shekar claimed they were aimed at defaming Ujjwal Nikam and inciting emotions.
"We have written to the Election Commission of India seeking action against Wadettiwar who is a star campaigner (of Congress) and also against the Congress party for peddling lies," he added.
Shelar further said (Ajmal) Kasab was sentenced to death for killing innocent people after following a due process of law.
Kasab was the lone terrorist who was captured alive by Mumbai Police during the 26/11 terror attack by Pakistani terrorists in which at least 166 people were killed and several others were injured.
Shelar wondered whether Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray supported the statement made by the Congress leader.
A former special public prosecutor, Nikam had represented the state in high-profile cases like the Mumbai serial bomb blasts and the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.
He is making his political foray from Mumbai North Central seat on a BJP ticket and is pitted against city Congress chief Varsha Gaikwad.
