Was Modi's MP from Bengaluru behind flight's emergency exit blunder before take-off? Opposition slams BJP

IndiGo, India's largest airline, recently made the news after a passenger on board one of its flights accidentally opened the emergency exit at the airport in Chennai in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

The flight, which was heading for Tiruchirapalli in the same state, was delayed by a few hours as a result because stringent engineering checks were carried out. However, it was reported that the airline allegedly took no action against the passenger after he apologised.

It was also reported that the passenger was none other than a parliamentarian of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and it soon snowballed into a political row with the opposition slamming Tejasvi Surya, a 32-year-old MP from Bengaluru, Karnataka. They also alleged that a grave incident was covered up with a mere apology.

In a statement on Tuesday (17), IndiGo said a passenger travelling on flight 6E 7339 from Chennai to Tiruchirapalli on December 10 accidentally unlocked the emergency exit during the boarding process. According to reports, the passenger "rested his hand on the door", unlocking the door to the right.

"The passenger immediately apologised for the action. As per SOP (Standard Operating Procedure), the incident was logged and the aircraft underwent mandatory engineering checks, which led to a delay in the flight's departure," the airline said but did not reveal the passenger's identity.

A senior official of India's aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said the matter was duly reported and that safety was not compromised.

"The crew took note and resultantly, all appropriate airworthiness action such as reinstalling of door, pressurization check were carried out before the release of the aircraft for departure. No safety was compromised," the DGCA official told PTI.

According to sources at Chennai airport, Surya was on the flight with K Annamalai, the BJP chief of the Tamil Nadu chapter of the BJP. It was reported that the latter had not commented on the matter.

A minister in Tamil Nadu, Senthil Balaji, flagged the incident the same month.

Opposition parties slammed Surya, who is a firebrand leader, in a series of posts and seeking to know why IndiGo did not reveal the passenger's name.

"Tejasvi Surya is an example of what will happen if children playing games are given the proprietorship. An act of children's mischief by trying to open the emergency exit door of the plane has come to light. Why prank with the lives of passengers?" asked the Indian National Congress in Karnataka, the opposition in Karnataka where Surya's BJP is in power.

"What was the MP's intention? What plans were there to create a disaster? Why was he transferred to the back seat after apologising," the Congress asked, asking prime minister Narendra Modi who he would have held responsible for a disaster if the "prank" had been carried out after take-off.

"Why is this not being investigated?" the opposition party asked.

Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar's post linked the incident to elections in the state that are due this year.

"For a safe take-off and landing, always fly with Congress," he tweeted.