Air India urination row: Accused sent to judicial custody, Scindia assures speedy action - 10 points

Shankar Mishra who was wanted for 'peeing' on an elderly woman on an Air India flight in November was arrested from Bengaluru by the Delhi Police on Friday evening. He was brought to Delhi where he was produced before a court today. The accused was sent to 14-day judicial custody. Read on for the latest updates in this big story.

New Delhi:Shankar Mishra, the man accused of urinating on a woman co-passenger on a flight, was sent to 14-day judicial custody by Patiala House court here on Saturday. During the hearing, the court denied police his custody questioning the ground for the same. Mishra also filed a bail petition on which the court issued a notice and the hearing for the same will take place on January 11. He allegedly urinated on the woman, a senior citizen, in an inebriated condition in the business class of the Air India flight from New York to Delhi on November 26 last year.

Here are the 10 latest points in this big story

1. Mishra was arrested by Delhi police in Bengaluru on Friday evening after a look-out notice was issued against the accused earlier this week. Police told the court that they needed to interrogate Mishra so that the cabin crew and captains could identify him however the court denied the custody. Passing the order, Metropolitan Magistrate Anamika noted that Mishra's custody was not required by police for recording statements of other witnesses, including cabin crew and co-passengers.
2. "Just because there's public pressure, don't do this. Go by the law," the judge said. Delhi Police had registered an FIR against him on January 4 on a complaint given by the woman to Air India. Mishra, who was working with US multinational firm Wells Fargo in India, was sacked on Friday.
3. Tata Group-owned Air India CEO Campbell Wilson issued a statement saying the airline could have handled the issue better and promised a robust reporting system of unruly behaviour and a system of reporting such incidents. "Air India is deeply concerned about the in-flight instances where customers have suffered due to the condemnable acts of their co-passengers on our aircraft. We regret and are pained about these experiences," he said. "Air India acknowledges that it could have handled these matters better, both in the air and on the ground and is committed to taking action."
4. With questions being raised about the airline not immediately reporting the unruly passenger to law enforcement authorities, he advised staff to report all incidents irrespective of a settlement being reached. "In the instance of the incident onboard AI-102 operating between New York and Delhi on November 26, 2022, four cabin crew and one pilot have been issued show cause notices and de-rostered pending investigation," he said, adding internal investigations into whether there were lapses by other staff are ongoing. The airline is reviewing "policy on service of alcohol in flight," he said.
5. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Thursday stated that Air India at first glance appeared to have not complied with provisions related to the handling of an unruly passenger onboard. The DGCA notices came after the airline told the regulator that its staff had not complained about the Mumbai businessman to law enforcement, as the aggrieved lady had "rescinded" an initial request for action after the two "appeared" to have sorted out the issue.
6. Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Saturday said that speedy action will be taken in the case. Further action will be taken speedily after the completion of the ongoing proceedings, Scindia told reporters in Gwalior without elaborating.
7. According to the FIR, the accused begged the woman not to lodge a complaint against him, saying he was a family man and did not wish his wife and child to be affected by the incident. Summons were issued to the staff for Friday but they did not appear before the police, they said. A lookout circular was issued against Mishra to prevent him from fleeing the country.
8. Shyam Mishra, father of Shankar Mishra has denied that his 34-year-old son could have done it and described it as a “totally false case”. "This is a totally false case. My son hadn't slept for 30-35 hours. After dinner, he might've consumed the drink given by the crew and then slept. From what I understand, he was questioned by airline staff after he woke up," news agency ANI quoted Shyam Mishra as saying.
9. During interrogation, the accused told police that he does not remember anything about the incident since he was sleepy. It was only when other passengers on the flight told him about his act, he apologised to the victim, police said. Mishra admitted that he was under the influence of alcohol. He claimed that while travelling in the US, he and his friend took turns driving the car and he did not get proper sleep, a senior police officer said.
10. A background check did not reveal any previous involvement in any case and there was no complaint against him. According to the FIR, shortly after lunch was served and the lights were switched off onboard AI 102 on November 26, 2022, the inebriated male passenger seated in business class seat 8A walked to the elderly woman's seat, unzipped his pants and urinated on her.