Naresh Goyal & wife not allowed to travel abroad
Cops issue lookout notice
Mumbai, May 25: Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal and his wife, Anita, were denied permission to travel abroad Saturday by the immigration authority at Mumbai airport, an official said.
The couple was on board Emirates Airways flight EK 507 to London via Dubai.
Mr Goyal was stopped from leaving the country due to a lookout circular issued by the Union home ministry, officials said.
An airport official said the aircraft was called back to the parking bay at the time of taxiing.
“Naresh Goyal and wife Anita Goyal travelling to London on EK 507 were restricted from leaving the country,” the official said. A source at Jet Airways said the couple was travelling with four big-sized suitcases.
“The checked-in baggage (suitcases) was in the name of Anita Goyal. The baggage was also offloaded, which delayed the flight by more than an hour,” the source added.
The flight was scheduled to depart at 3.35 pm. After deplaning the couple, it took off after 5 pm.
Naresh Goyal could not be reached for comments. Response to a query sent to Emirates was also awaited.
In a late evening statement, Emirates only said it was cooperating with “relevant authorities”.
“Emira-tes is co-operating fully with the relevant authorities and we abide by the laws of the various countries we operate in,” the airline said. Calls to its spokesperson in India to seek clarity did not yield a response.
The specific reason for stopping the Goyal couple from taking the flight could not be immediately ascertained.
Accor-ding to sources, Naresh Goyal was travelling for a meeting with executives of Gulf carrier Etihad and the Hinduja Group on revival plan for the now defunct Jet Airways.
The airline stopped flying from April 17 due to an acute liquidity crisis.
Earlier this week, Hinduja group had said it was evaluating the opportunity to invest in Jet Airways.