Italian DJ says slapped by Air India staff at Hyderabad airport, airline denies

Hyderabad: Olly Esse, an Italian DJ, has alleged that she was manhandled by an Air India outsourcing staff at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport on August 19, a charge denied by the national carrier.

M Mahesh, Airport police inspector said they received a complaint from her on April 19 and booked a case under sections for punishment for voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation of IPC and were investigating it.

In a video posted in the social media, Esse said she was travelling on an Air India flight to Delhi, which was delayed by nine hours. She went to the Air India counter and asked for help, but the employee at the desk did not respond properly.

"The lady at the desk who was supposed to help me was rude. At the end of the story she slapped me. I want to complain to the police, but that was not possible as the guy (police) who should take the complaint was not there. I feel violated," she said in the video.

When contacted an AI spokesperson denied the charge and said the lady whom Esse met at the Air India counter was an outsourcing employee.

"The person (female employee) is an outsourcing employee. She did not slap her. That was a false allegation. Ms Esse was filming the employee with her mobile phone, to which she (the employee) objected and tried to stop her. In the melee, her phone slipped from her hand, but did not fall on the ground," the Air India official told PTI.

The police official said they verifying the footage and that investigation was going on.