Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan hit out at Air India on Saturday after he was allegedly allotted a “broken and sunk” seat on the flight.
In a social media post, the minister termed it an “unethical” practice where the passengers are made to sit on bad and uncomfortable seats after being charged the full ticket amount.
Chouhan was flying from Bhopal to Delhi—where he had to attend multiple farm events—when he allegedly faced the bitter experience.
“I had booked a ticket on Air India flight number AI436, I was allotted seat number 8C. I went and sat on the seat, the seat was broken and sunken in. It was uncomfortable to sit,” he wrote on X.
When the minister confronted the airline staff, he was told that the management had already been informed about the defective seat which shouldn’t be sold to passengers.
“My co-passengers requested me to change my seat and sit on a better seat but why should I trouble another friend for my sake, I decided that I would complete my journey by sitting on this same seat,” he said.
Further, coming down heavily on Air India for the poor service, he accused the airline of “cheating” passengers.
“My impression was that Air India’s service would have improved after Tata took over the management, but it turned out to be my misconception. I don’t care about sitting discomfort, but it is unethical to make passengers sit on bad and uncomfortable seats after charging them the full amount. Isn’t this cheating the passengers?,” he asked.
In reply to the minister’s message, Air India tendered an apology and said they are examining the issue.
“Dear Sir, we apologize for the inconvenience caused. Please be rest assured that we are looking into this matter carefully to prevent any such occurrences in the future. We would appreciate the opportunity to speak with you, kindly DM us a convenient time to connect,” it said.