Air India horror: Who is Shankar Mishra, the man accused of urinating on 70-year-old woman

The man who urinated on a septuagenarian woman in a business class Air India flight from New York to Delhi has been identified as Shankar Mishra. The accused was inebriated at the time of the incident on November 26, 2022. Mishra is the Vice President of the India Chapter of the US-based financial services company Wells Fargo. 

A senior Delhi Police official told the news agency PTI that Mishra is a resident of Mumbai and the investigation teams are trying to trace him. The official said, “Mishra is a resident of Mumbai. We had sent our teams to Mumbai at his known locations but he was absconding. Our teams are trying to trace them.”

A case has been registered against Mishra under the following sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC): 294 (obscene act in a public place), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), and 510 (misconduct in public by a drunken person) as well as section 23 of the Aircraft Rules. 

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Air India imposed a 30-day flying ban on the errant passenger and has taken serious cognisance of the incident. The airline spokesperson said, “The passenger has been banned from flying with Air India for 30 days or till the decision of the internal committee, whichever is earlier. If found guilty, action will be taken against the unruly passenger as per regulatory guidelines.” 

Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) chief Arun Kumar told Business Today, “We mean business and will take the matter to its logical conclusion.” The civil aviation regulator has also issued show cause notices to the accountable manager, director of in-flight services, Air India, and pilots and cabin crew of the flight for their handling of the incident. 

The DGCA stated that the concern of the airline appears to be unprofessional and led to a systemic failure. The DGCA stated, “Prime facie, it emerges that provisions related to handling an unruly passenger on board have not been complied with. The conduct of the concerned airline appears to be unprofessional and has led to a systemic failure. It lacks appreciation of regulatory obligations.”

Meanwhile, Wells Fargo said in its statement regarding the shocking incident that the company is cooperating with the authorities concerned. The company statement read, “Wells Fargo holds employees to the highest standards of professional and personal behaviour. We are fully cooperating with the authorities in their enquiries regarding this incident.”

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