VASCO: Even as the country is leaping ahead with furious speed to attain digitisation all over, Patricia Afonso and her family had to face a strange ordeal on Sunday night. The CISF personnel at Dabolim airport main gate not only failed to “read” her e-ticket, they stopped the family from taking the flight back to Mumbai.
For Patricia, accompanied by her husband, two sons (one of them is suffering from traumatic brain injury) and her 83-year-old mother-in-law, it should have been an otherwise smooth flight, but it was ordained otherwise. Patricia had to reach Mumbai as she had an appointment for her cancer treatment.
Patricia, who is working with AAI at the regional headquarters in Mumbai, an unpleasant surprise was awaiting the family when they reached Dabolim airport on Sunday evening. Their Go-air flight was to take off at 11pm.
When the CISF personnel at the departure gate asked for the ticket, they displayed their e-ticket. The personnel refused to entertian them until another CISF staffer intervened and allowed them to proceed towards the check-in counter. But they were shocked to learn that they would not be allowed to travel “thanks” to the instructions from CISF!
“Though we had produced all ID proof and displayed the e-ticket, the CISF staff did not allow us to enter the terminal building because we were not carrying hard copies of the ticket and he was unable to read the ticket details displayed on the mobile screen. He was getting irritated and unruly. Ironically, even after showing all our ID proof, we were first not allowed to enter the airport premises and later told that we won’t be allowed to travel only because I had clicked a snap of the CISF personnel who had stopped us from entering the airport. By then, the CISF personnel who we were dealing with, had complained to his superiors and we were disallowed to travel. I had to reach the hospital for my ongoing cancer treatment on Monday. We had to wait at airport from 11 pm to 5 am,” said Patricia, who later filed a police complaint at the Dabolim airport police station seeking action against the CISF staff for mental harassment, torture and for human rights violation.
Meanwhile, confirming the complaint lodged at the police station, PI Nolasco Raposo (additional charge of Dabolim police station) said he would forward the same to the Deputy Commandant CISF and AAI for reply and necessary action would be initiated thereafter.
Herald made several attempts to seek the AAI’s reaction, but in vain.
