56-yr old first-time flyer smokes beedi on Akasa flight, gets caught at Bengaluru airport  

A 56-year-old first-time flyer on Tuesday was arrested at Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) for smoking beedi mid-air on an Akasa Air Ahmedabad-Bengaluru flight. The man, identified as Praveen Kumar, was charged with putting the lives of fellow passengers in danger.  The Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-backed airline’s duty manager filed a complaint with the airport police after the flight’s landing at the airport.  

Kumar hails from Rajasthan’s Marwar and had boarded the flight from Ahmedabad. Crew members caught him smoking inside the toilet. Kumar was then sent to Bengaluru central jail. He claimed that this was his first flight ever and that he did not know about the airlines’ strict no-smoking policy, Times of India reported.  

The accused reportedly told the police: “I regularly travel by train and smoke inside the toilet. Thinking I could do the same here, I decided to smoke a beedi”. A senior police official told the publication that cigarettes get detected easily and failing to do so indicates a serious lapse.  

The officer further said that Kumar was flying alongside an aged person, who was flying to Bengaluru to participate in the post-death rituals of a family relative. The accused has to spend at least one week in judicial custody once arrested, as per the official. 

Commenting on the incident, an Akasa Air spokesperson said that the crew followed the required safety protocols and handed over the passenger to the local police. The Akasa Air spokesperson further said that airline is assisting authorities with their investigation into the matter.  

This, however, is not the only instance wherein flyers have been caught smoking on flights. Earlier this year, the KIA police booked two passengers for lighting up cigarettes mid-air. The accused in these cases were aware of the fact that smoking is strictly prohibited on flights, as per a senior police official.  

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