Frisking national icon outrageous

When it became known that the people's president as former president A P J Abdul Kalam is popularly known was subjected to frisking before he boarded a Continental Airlines flight to the US, it's but natural that the Indian public was miffed. The issue rocked Parliament this week with members cutting across party lines condemning the incident and the media has splashed the story all around. Are we overreacting? Not quite.
The outraged responses are a reflection of the immense popularity Kalam enjoys with the Indian public, as well as against what is perceived as a blatant violation of ground rules by a foreign airline. Indian law clearly mandates that certain people are exempt from body checks before they board an aircraft. These include the head of state, and an assortment of politicians and other public personalities.
The airline claims that it was following standard operating procedure, which requires passengers to be frisked if they are flying to the US. But the aircraft was taking off from Indian soil, and therefore had to abide by the regulations that are binding in this country. All international airlines are given a list of people exempt from body checks by the Indian authorities, and they ought to know that Kalam was one of them.
Not following Indian rules in India is a calculated insult to the nation. Imagine what would have happened if Barack Obama were to be frisked by Air India crew. Now that would create quite a hullabaloo, wouldn't it?
23/07/09 Kaurvaki Rao/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Jul 2009, Foreign Jul 2009