'Air India staff abused PM Modi, I reacted', Gaikwad defends actions
It may be recalled that in one of his previous interviews, Gaikwad had said that he assaulted the staff after he threatened to 'complain' to the prime minister.
After he was refused a ticket for the second time by Air India, Shiv Sena Member of Parliament Ravindra Gaikwad issued a statement about the assault. In his 4-page statement in Marathi, Gaikwad has alleged that his assault was in retaliation to Air India crew member abusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has also claimed that argument broke out over a complaint book and not business class seat as claimed by Air India officials.
"Whatever happened is a reaction to action. The staff made insulting comments against Prime Minister Modi. Though I received a business class ticket on the boarding pass, no official informed me after I entered the plane that the flight does not have a business class," Ravindra Gaikwad claimed in his statement.
He accused the media of biased reporting and refusing to consider his side of the story. This, after he gave multiple interviews to television channels where he bragged about thrashing the 60-year-old employee of Air India with his footwear. It may be recalled that Gaikwad in one of his interviews had stated that he assaulted the staff after he threatened to 'complain' to Narendra Modi.
In his statement, Gaikwad further states that Air India refused to provide him with a complaint book and later failed to issue him an acknowledgement of his complaint. "My complaint was written on a plain, random piece of paper and they refused to give a receipt. All I asked for was a complaint book to convey my issues with the airline and their bad services. He concluded by stating that he has put his complaint forward to the members of the Lok Sabha as well as the Delhi police.
OneIndia News