Scindia will examine the issue of charging passengers for boarding passes

On Friday, Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said he would look into the issue of charging passengers extra for making boarding passes at airports.

Scindia’s comments came after a passenger complained on Twitter that domestic carrier SpiceJet had introduced a new rule where the airline was charging extra for issuing boarding cards at check-in counters.

“SpiceJet’s new rules. If you want to get a boarding card at the check-in counter, you have to pay extra. It’s like telling a customer at a restaurant that you will be charged if you want to eat on a plate. What the consumer forum is doing! @Flyspicejet.” The passenger wrote the name of Dr. Niti Shikha on Twitter.

“This is against India’s public policy – what if a consumer does not have a smart phone! Do you charge a consumer extra for a ticket for which he has already paid!”, Added another person in a tweet.

Meanwhile, prominent journalist Madhavan Narayanan retweeted the allegation and tagged Scindia. Scindia replied that she would examine the matter as soon as possible. “Agreed, it will be tested as soon as possible!” He posted on the micro-blogging site

Scindia also recently took cognizance of another airport incident where she said she would investigate alleged abuse of a specially-disabled child by Indigo staff at Ranchi Airport.

“There is zero tolerance for such behavior. No one has to go through it! I am investigating the matter myself and appropriate action will be taken later,” Scindia said.

On May 7, an Indigo manager refused to allow a specially able child to board a flight at Ranchi Airport. According to an eyewitness account shared on Twitter, IndiGo allegedly announced that the specially-disabled child was at flight risk. He even compared the child’s condition, the teenager’s perseverance, to that of drunk passengers. He considers the child unfit for travel. Finally, leaving the child and his parents, the flight left for Hyderabad.

Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked Indigo for a report on the incident.

Read more: Indigo line of discrimination: ‘I will investigate the matter myself,’ says Scindia