Kalam frisking: Govt files case against airline

There was outrage in Parliament over an alleged insult to former President APJ Abdul Kalam. Kalam who is in the list of VIPs exempt from security checks at Indian airports was frisked like a commoner at the Delhi airport by the staff of the American carrier Continental Airlines.

Sources say the CISF personnel who escorted Dr Kalam upto the aircraft door asked the airline staff not to frisk him but the airline did not agree.

The former President politely went through the security check but MPs are furious.

"Our ministers are frisked, they have to remove their shoes and their belts while we feel so enamoured with other countries that we receive their dignitaries at the tarmac with cars and they are exempt from such issues," said Arun Jaitley, leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha.

"Suspend the operations of this airlines, also as this is coming from the US could this have anything to do with his name being Abdul Kalam? If this is the case then it is a much more serious matter," said Sitaram Yechury, CPM leader.

As a former President Dr Kalam was the head of the Indian state and also it happened in Indian soil, that's why the MPs were agitated.

For now, the government has filed a case against the airline for violating aviation rules. The charge carries a punishment of two years in jail or a 10 lakh rupee fine.

But they still have harsher options like cancelling the airline's licence to operate in India.

"The act by Continental Airlines in itself is a violation of the rules, a case will be filed against the company," said Praful Patel, Union Civil Aviation Minister.

Continental Airlines refused to apologise. In a statement the airline said:

"It believes Dr Kalam was not offended and was pleased by the service."

Embarrassed by this episode, the aviation ministry now says it won't let this happen again. But the ministry's own statement on action against the airline had the former President's name wrong.