Srinagar, Sept 10: A Kashmiri flyer has lodged a complaint with a private airline after a Delhi-based staffer of the company allegedly called him a “terrorist.”
 Umar Hameed, a carpet dealer, has shot an e-mail to the airline’s customer centre, narrating how the airline manger at IGI Airport in New Delhi “misbehaved” with him and called him a “terrorist.”

 The incident, which created a scene at the New Delhi’s IGI Airport on September 9, has forced the airline to apologize to Hameed.

 “Vide my ticket PNR No-Q3IZDE, I was supposed to travel from New Delhi to Srinagar on September 9. My flight was scheduled to depart at 12.30 pm. The booking had been done on giibibo.com where all my details and email were registered. When I reached the airport 2-hours prior to departure, I was told that my flight stands cancelled since August 20. This came as a shock to me because I had not been intimated about it,” Umar, who works with Hanan’s Oriental Rugs, told Greater Kashmir.

 “I took up the matter with the airliner staffer. She told me that that they didn’t have my mobile number and therefore couldn’t contact me. I showed her the message from airline on my mobile which read: welcome on board. This message is still in my inbox and was shot on August 27. So how was the flight cancelled on August 20?”

 Umar said: “The staffer informed me that they were not having my e-mail address. I was surprised to hear this because the printout of the ticket carried my valid e-mail ID. I asked them to ensure my seat in the next day’s flight to Srinagar. But she refused to do so, citing full booking. When I told her that this is not done, she started misbehaving with me and went on to say that we Kashmiris are terrorists and keep fighting. I took strong exception to this and shouted at her. The scene was witnessed by hundreds of people at the IGI Airport.”

 Umar has narrated the entire episode in his e-mail to customer relations. In response, an airline official has responded by apologizing to Ummar. “This has reference to your complaint regarding the rude behavior of the staffer. We will sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused to you. Please note that we have forwarded your feedback to the concerned department, so that the concerned staff should be briefed upon the same,” customer relation officer has written back.

 Meanwhile, Ummar returned to Valley and has threatened to move court against the airline.

Lastupdate on : Sat, 11 Sep 2010 21:30:00 Mecca time
Lastupdate on : Sat, 11 Sep 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sun, 12 Sep 2010 00:00:00 IST