Shuttler PV Sindhu hits out at IndiGo, calls staff rude

Hyderabad: Ace badminton player and Rio Olympics silver medallist P.V. Sindhu has taken to twitter to describe the “bad experience” she had on a Hyderabad-Mumbai IndiGo flight (6E 608) on Saturday.

P.V. Ramana, Sindhu's father, says, “Her cabin baggage was her racquets which mean the world to her. She agreed for it to be shifted to the cargo as there was no space in the overhead locker, but she just asked the man to take care. He replied rudely, saying, why should he?”

Sindhu’s series of tweets began with naming the employee. While some followers commended her for voicing her opinion online, a few also said that airline rules cannot be bent for anyone. Some tweets also came in support of the ground staff, asking Sindhu to forgive the man and said that it could ruin his career.

Sindhu further tweeted that the man spoke very rudely to her and when the airhostess tried to intervene, he was rude to her as well.

“When airhostess Ashmia asked the ground staff for his name to complain, he shoved his ID card in her face and asked her to write his name down to complain. He misbehaved with her as well then why should we not take his name?” says Mr Ramana. He said the airhostess herself told Sindhu to take the matter up with higher authorities and if possible to tweet about the incident as she has over two million followers.

Soon after her tweet, IndiGo replied asking her for a number where the airline could contact her. The airline stated that the luggage had to be moved for security purposes. “Ms Sindhu was informed that her baggage will be moved to cargohold of the aircraft. This is the same policy we follow for all customers. Oversized baggage inside the cabin inconveniences other customers and can also be a safety hazard if it cannot be secured properly in the cabin,” the airline said.

Ajay Jasra, IndiGo's director, corporate communications, told Deccan Chronicle: “We have already contacted Mr Ajeetesh, our ground staff, regarding the issue and he has clearly said that he did not behave rudely and was just performing his duty. We are yet to get in touch with Ashmia, the air hostess who Sindhu has named, because she has been on duty for the whole day. We regret the incident but the length of the baggage was too long.”

He further stated, “A badminton racquet is about 68 centimetres in length as opposed to the 55 centimetre rule the airline has. We could not let her baggage be squashed while adjusting the cabin baggage because it contained her racquets.”

"Sindhu has always carried her racquets as cabin baggage on both domestic and international flights, including on IndiGo Airlines. So I don't know why it was a problem this time,” says her father Mr Ramana.