Thiruvananthapuram: An internal complaints committee of Air-India that probed into a fabricated sexual harassment complaint against a whistleblower is now under police scanner for serious flaws in the inquiry. An assistant commissioner of police who is probing the matter has said in a statement filed before the High Court recently that the measures and procedures the committee had followed were suspicious.
A complaint signed by 17 female staff of AI-SATS, an airport ground handling agency, was filed against Mr. L.S. Sibu who was an officer-apron in ground service department of Air-India in Thiruvananthapuram airport. An initial probe had found that the complaint was false and it was result of a conspiracy by some officials of AI SATS as Mr Sibu had earlier complained before the higher-ups as well as the CBI and Central Vigilance Commission about the ground handling contract awarded to AI SATS by Air-India. A crime branch probe had also found that the complaint was forged.
The statement submitted by district crime branch assistant commissioner R. Dethan who is probing the case now listed the improprieties committed by the internal complaints committee. The committee examined only of the 17 female staff members whose names and signatures were seen in the complaint. The others had told the police team which investigated the case that they had given no complaint against anyone and that the signatures appeared against their names were forged.
None of the 17 staff complained of interference or intimidation by the police to withdraw the complaint. “The measures and procedures followed by the internal complaints committee of Air-India in the enquiry of the alleged petition against the de facto complainant (Sibu) is also suspicious especially in a situation where the de facto complainant had earlier filed frequent complaints before higher-ups and the CBI and the CVC of the huge financial fraud and corruptions by AISATS," said the statement of the assistant commissioner.
