Flier awarded Rs 50000 for drink refusal

New Delhi: An international airline has been directed to pay a compensation of Rs 50,000 to a Canadian on being discriminated against because of her gender after one of its crew members refused to serve her alcohol as she was a woman.
A district consumer disputes redressal forum has also advised the Jet Airways India Limited "to train its staff on etiquette and behaviour" without any discrimination on the basis of gender and nationality.
"It is the choice of the passenger to demand the drink of their liking in the air journey and Indian crew members cannot be allowed to make any differential remarks between Indian and European women and they are expected to respect even lady members who demand alcohol and that too cannot be denied by the airline's crew members as it is a question of choice and not of imposing one's culture biases and prejudice on any one," said district forum president C K Chaturvedi.
The woman, working with the Canadian High Commission in India, had filed the petition claiming that she was aggrieved by the etiquettes and behaviour of the crew member of Jet Airways Limited during her return journey from Bangkok to Delhi through their flight on December 15, 2009. She alleged in her complaint that after taking off, when the plane was in the air and services had begun with beverages and snacks, she had ordered a rum drink. She was, however, informed by the male steward that the complainant being a female could not have alcoholic drink.
21/12/11 Smriti Singh/Times of India

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Categories: Foreign Dec 2011, Jet Airways Dec 2011