A 33-year-old passenger was booked for allegedly tampering with an aircraft’s emergency exit mechanism aboard an IndiGo flight from Delhi to Pune shortly after take-off on Monday, triggering an alarm and raising safety concerns.
The passenger, identified as Gaurav Rawate, a resident of Saswad, was seated near the emergency exit when he tampered with the protective cover of the door lever, triggering the alarm. “During questioning, the passenger claimed that he had touched the cover out of curiosity to find out what it was, without realising that it was connected to the emergency exit mechanism. The alarm went off after he touched it.
The incident occurred aboard flight 6E6884, which departed Delhi at around 12.45 am on November 2 and landed safely at Pune’s Lohegaon Airport at approximately 2 am, according to Pune airport police. Police served Rawate a notice under Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).
Interference with such a safety mechanism can endanger the lives of everyone on board, as it could affect the functioning of the emergency exit,” said Govind Jadhav, senior police inspector, Airport police station. IndiGo sources said Rawate was declared an unruly passenger following the incident and handed over to the authorities after landing, in accordance with the airline’s standard operating procedures (SOPs).
