Pune: Pimpri resident Azhar Wadikar was excited about an upcoming tour of Germany in March 2014 to meet his wife, posted there on a work visa.
He had valid travel documents, including passport, confirmed air ticket and a tourist visa granted by the German Consulate, when he reported for his Mumbai-Munich Lufthansa airline flight in the wee hours of March 13, 2014.
But the airline's officials refused him to board the flight on the grounds that he could not properly explain the purpose of his visit to Germany.
For the next 27 hours, Wadikar found himself detained at the airport. It took an official from the German Consulate to visit the airport to clear the matter.
The airline then asked Wadikar to pay Rs70,000 for a fresh ticket for the flight on March 14, 2014. But he refused, arguing he was unfairly denied his flight the previous night, and preferred flying to Munich with another airline.
Responding to his complaint, the Pune district consumer court directed Lufthansa to refund the ticket amount - Rs46,580 - with Rs45,000 as damages to Wadikar for deficient service. The court has set 45 days' time, from the date of receipt of the order, for the airline to make the refund with damages.
"It is a common experience that at the time of granting visa, thorough enquiry is made by the Consulate and only after due satisfaction, visa is granted. In such circumstances, it was not fair for the airline to make a thorough enquiry again when the visa was already granted to the complainant by the German Consulate," the bench observed.
21/07/16 Times of India
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He had valid travel documents, including passport, confirmed air ticket and a tourist visa granted by the German Consulate, when he reported for his Mumbai-Munich Lufthansa airline flight in the wee hours of March 13, 2014.
But the airline's officials refused him to board the flight on the grounds that he could not properly explain the purpose of his visit to Germany.
For the next 27 hours, Wadikar found himself detained at the airport. It took an official from the German Consulate to visit the airport to clear the matter.
The airline then asked Wadikar to pay Rs70,000 for a fresh ticket for the flight on March 14, 2014. But he refused, arguing he was unfairly denied his flight the previous night, and preferred flying to Munich with another airline.
Responding to his complaint, the Pune district consumer court directed Lufthansa to refund the ticket amount - Rs46,580 - with Rs45,000 as damages to Wadikar for deficient service. The court has set 45 days' time, from the date of receipt of the order, for the airline to make the refund with damages.
"It is a common experience that at the time of granting visa, thorough enquiry is made by the Consulate and only after due satisfaction, visa is granted. In such circumstances, it was not fair for the airline to make a thorough enquiry again when the visa was already granted to the complainant by the German Consulate," the bench observed.
21/07/16 Times of India
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