IndiGo passenger booked for tampering with emergency exit mechanism on Pune-bound flight

A 33-year-old passenger on board an IndiGo flight allegedly tampered with the emergency exit door lever cover shortly after takeoff from Delhi, causing a mid-air scare, police said on Tuesday.

The incident occurred on Monday aboard flight 6E6884 bound for Pune, when the passenger, Gaurav Satyendra Routela, a resident of Saswad, was seated near the emergency exit and he allegedly interfered with the door mechanism, an official said.

During questioning, Routela claimed that he touched the cover out of curiosity to find out what it was, without knowing that it was connected to the emergency exit, senior inspector Govind Pawar of the Airport Police Station told PTI.

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An alarm went off after the passenger touched the cover, triggering panic onboard, he said, adding that any attempt to interfere with the emergency exit mechanism could endanger the lives and safety of other passengers.

The flight took off from Delhi at around 12.45 am on Monday and arrived in Pune at around 2 am.

Based on a complaint lodged by a member of the flight crew, a case was registered agaisnt the passenger under section 125 (any act done so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life or the personal safety of others) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and provisions of the Aircraft Act, the official said.

Police have served a notice under section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) to Routela, and further investigation is underway, he added.