'Opened door by mistake': Jyotiraditya Scindia defends Tejasvi Surya

The Opposition parties including the Congress, DMK and TMC claimed that the accidental opening of the emergency door of the flight was a huge mistake and put lives at risk.

New Delhi, Jan 18: Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Wednesday said BJP leader Tejasvi Surya opened the emergency exit of an IndiGo plane last month "by mistake" and apologised for it.

"When incident happened Tejasvi Surya himself reported it to pilot and crew. Full protocol was followed as DGCA has investigated. Only after all checks the aircraft took off. He (Surya) himself apologised for delay caused due to the incident," said Scindia.

"It's important not to be circumspect. Look at the facts. The door did open by mistake, all checks were taken and only after that the plane was allowed to take off. And he also said sorry for it himself," Scindia told reporters.

Many media reports said that Surya allegedly opened the door which led to a two hour delay.

The Opposition parties including the Congress, DMK and TMC claimed that the accidental opening of the emergency door of the flight was a huge mistake and put lives at risk.

"Tejasvi Surya is an example of what will happen if children playing games are given the proprietorship. An act of children's mischief by trying to open the emergency exit door of the plane has come to light. Why prank with the lives of passengers?" Karnataka Congress said.

In its statement, IndiGo said the incident took place on December 10 on flight 6E 7339 between Chennai to Tiruchirapalli when the passenger accidentally opened the emergency exit while the plane was on the ground and passengers were boarding the plane.

"The passenger immediately apologised for the action. As per SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures), the incident was logged and the aircraft underwent mandatory engineering checks, which led to a delay in the flight's departure," it said.