'Go, stitch slippers': IndiGo trainee pilot files caste abuse complaint against 3 senior officials; police launch probe

In another bizarre incident, a trainee pilot of IndiGo Airlines accused three of his colleagues of caste abuse at the workplace. The pilot alleged they called him derogatory names. He also accused the senior officials of telling him that he was "not fit to fly a plane" and "must stitch shoes". The 35-year-old trainee pilot, who belongs to a Scheduled Caste, has filed a police complaint.

Following the accusations, an FIR has been registered against IndiGo officials Tapas Dey, Manish Sahni and Captain Rahul Patil under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. However, IndiGo has termed the allegations "baseless".

According to NDTV, the complainant first approached the police in Bengaluru, where the cops registered a zero FIR, an FIR that can be filed in any police station irrespective of where the crime took place.

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FIR has been sent to Gurugram, IndiGo's headquarter

After the FIR was filed, the complaint has now been sent to Gurugram at IndiGo's headquarters.

However, the airline trashed the allegations, and an airline spokesperson issued a statement saying, "IndiGo upholds a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of discrimination, harassment, or bias and remains firmly committed to being an inclusive and respectful workplace. IndiGo strongly refutes these baseless claims and stands by its values of fairness, integrity, and accountability and will extend its support to the law enforcement agencies as required."

Investigation launched based on the accusations

Based on his complaint, a case has been registered against the three accused under relevant sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Meanwhile, the police have launched a further investigation into the allegations levelled by Ashok Kumar, reported India Today.

Complaints made by a trainee IndiGo pilot

In his complaint, the trainee pilot described a meeting that took place on April 28 at IndiGo¡¯s Gurugram office. He claimed that during the 30-minute session, he was told that he was unfit to fly an aircraft. "Go back and stitch slippers. You are not even worthy of being a watchman here."