Expected to be treated with dignity: Manu Bhaker
Not just as a sportsperson, even as a human being I expected to be treated with a little dignity,” says Manu Bhaker, India’s Tokyo Olympics medal prospect. Bhaker recently alleged she and her mother were mistreated by airline employees at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, while trying to board a flight to Bhopal, but an Air India statement has denied it.
“On 19th (February) I was travelling to Bhopal with my mother, to a training camp. Despite having all the documents, the officials mistreated us, making us look like criminals trying to board a flight and bypass rules. I was carrying clearance from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for travelling with my weapons and ammunition. Initially they did not accept the DGCA letter, and asked me to furnish one from the National Rifle Association of India. I arranged for it on mail and was allowed to check-in. But when boarding, my mother and I were insulted and asked to pay ₹10,200,” the 19-year-old says. Bhaker, who tweeted for help to the aviation and sports ministers, boarded the flight after government intervention. Talking from Bhopal, Bhaker says it’s not about the money, but the way she was treated. “When I told them main Olympics mein khelti hun aur regularly fly karti hun, one official said, ‘Humein koi farak nahi padta... Paise dene mein itni dikkat nahi honi chahiye’. It is a form of bribe to force us to pay when we have documents excusing us,” she says.
The airline tweeted that its employees were asking her for relevant documents or pay the charges. Bhaker, preparing for the ISSF World Cup from March 18-29 in New Delhi, says she hopes no athlete has to face the ordeal. “Even if our documents are incomplete, there is a way to communicate that to us,” she says.