The Indian police have started filing a case against the college student who allegedly peed on another passenger during an American Airlines flight from New York City to India over the weekend.
The incident reportedly occurred on a 15-hour flight from New York City’s JFK Airport to Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India, on Saturday when the student, identified as 21-year-old Aryan Vohra, allegedly urinated on a fellow passenger, according to Asian News International (ANI).
Vohra was reportedly flying to India to attend his sister’s wedding.
In a statement, American Airlines explained that Vohra, an Indian national studying in the United States, boarded the plane heavily intoxicated and was not following instructions.
The airline said the student also argued with the flight crew and refused to be seated, which endangered the aircraft and other passengers. The incident peaked when Vohra suddenly urinated on the passenger seated on 15G.
American Airlines said it had contacted Delhi Air Traffic Control before landing at Indira Gandhi International Airport, where it requested security assistance to handle the unruly passenger.
Subscribe to
NextShark's Newsletter
A daily dose of Asian America's essential stories, in under 5 minutes.
Get our collection of Asian America's most essential stories to your inbox daily for free.
Unsure? Check out our Newsletter Archive.
An airport official said India’s Central Industrial Security Force escorted the student from the plane upon landing, noting that he was also being unruly to the authorities.
In a statement acknowledging the incident, the Delhi police said Vohra is a resident of Defence Colony, a neighborhood in Delhi.
Vohra was taken into police custody following his flight’s arrival in India, but he was released on bail on Sunday Morning as his offense was reportedly under “bailable sections,” authorities said.
Devesh Kumar Mahla, deputy commissioner of police at Indira Gandhi International Airport, told ANI that the authorities are now taking legal action against Vohra, adding, “we will do our best in this case.” They have registered a case against the student under India’s Penal Code and the Civil Aviation Act.
“Vohra told us that he went to the washroom, but the door was locked,” Mahla said, Times of India reported. “We are verifying his testimony,” he added, noting that investigators will take statements from other passengers and the flight crew.
Although ANI did not mention the victim’s gender, the Times of India, citing sources, noted that Vohra had urinated on a male business-class passenger. Vohra allegedly begged the man not to file a complaint against him, to which he agreed. Vohra, however, was still arrested due to the complaint made by the airline, police said.
“He was in a state of inebriation and urinated while he was asleep. It somehow leaked and fell on a fellow passenger who complained to the crew,” a source at the airport told Press Trust of India.
Meanwhile, American Airlines announced it would forever ban Vohra from boarding its planes again.
“We’re grateful to our crew members who are consistently dedicated to the safety and care of our customers and handled the circumstances with the utmost professionalism,” the airline said in a statement.
