DIWAKAR LIED: RAJU

With all major scheduled domestic airlines now banning Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP J.C. Diwakar Reddy from flying on their flights for alleged misbehaviour at the Visakhapatnam airport before boarding an IndiGo flight on Thursday, civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Friday said he would “get the entire incident at Vizag airport enquired into to find out the exact details and ensure that lawful outcomes follow.”

The minister also maintained that he had not intervened in the matter, thereby contradicting the MP’s claim to a TV channel that he had done so. The minister also said CCTV footage available had revealed that the MP had lied to him about when he had reached the airport before the flight.

“I will get the entire incident at Vizag Airport enquired into to find out the exact details and ensure that lawful outcomes follow,” the minister tweeted on Friday.

On reports in a certain section of the media that he had intervened to ensure that the mercurial Anantapur MP was able to board the IndiGo flight from Visakhapatnam after the ruckus, Mr Raju said, “There was no such intervention.” Significantly, the minister’s statement contradicts the claim Mr Reddy made to a TV channel on Thursday night that he was able to board the flight after the intervention of the minister to whom he had complained.

After IndiGo, Air India and SpiceJet had confirmed on Thursday that they had banned Mr Reddy from their flights, Jet Airways, Vistara, Go Air and AirAsia India too confirmed on Friday that the MP had been banned from their flights. Now all major scheduled domestic carriers have banned Mr. Reddy from their flights. The airlines had in March banned Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad.