Who is Shankar Mishra, the man who ‘urinated’ on an Air India passenger?

Who is Shankar Mishra?

Shankar Mishra, before being terminated by Wells Fargo, was employed in its office in Mumbai as the Vice President of Operations (India). He is a resident of Mumbai and is known as ‘Suraj’ in Kamgar Nagar, where he has been staying for the past two decades, according to his neighbours.

Shankar Mishra was arrested following a complaint by a woman aboard an Air India flight from New York that he urinated on her in business class. (AP)

Referred to as ‘Suraj M’ on LinkedIn as well, according to Newsroompost, he is an alumni of SVKM’s Marsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS), a private university in Mumbai.

The Indian Express reported that Mishra’s family “did not socialise much”.

According to the Nehru Nagar police, Mishra does not have any criminal background. His neighbours, too, said they did not see Mishra engaging in any such conduct. According to them, Mishra stayed with his elderly parents, wife, and two-year-old daughter.

Shankar Mishra Air India ‘urination’ case: What has happened so far?

Following the accusations of a woman who was travelling on the Air India flight on November 26, 2022, the police issued a Look Out Circular (LoC) against Mishra. The Delhi Police issued summons to eight crew members of the airline, including the pilot, and deployed four teams across Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi to trace the accused.

Referred to as ‘Suraj M’ on LinkedIn as well, according to Newsroompost, he is an alumni of SVKM’s Marsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS), a private university in Mumbai. (PTI)

Based on a complaint by Air India, the Delhi Police had on Wednesday filed an FIR on charges of sexual harassment and outraging the modesty of a woman. Mishra was booked under Indian Penal Code sections 354 (sexual harassment), 294 (obscene act), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), 510 (misconduct in public by a drunken person) and section 23 of Air Craft Rules, 1937.

The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) also issued notices to the Delhi Police, DGCA and Air India and sought an action taken report against the airline for its negligence in the matter.

Mishra remained untraceable despite teams being sent to his residence in Mumbai’s Kamgar Nagar in Kurla. Officials said that his family was not cooperating with the investigations, following which assistance was sought from the Mumbai Police, who kept a close watch on Mishra’s residence.

According to technical investigations, including an examination of Mishra’s call records, his last location was revealed to be Bengaluru from where he was arrested on Saturday morning. A Delhi court on the same day sent him to judicial custody for 14 days.

‘Urination’ case against Shankar Mishra

In his bail application moved before the Metropolitan Magistrate (Mahila court) at Patiala House court in New Delhi, Mishra said he was not running away from the fact that he had committed an obscene and revolting act, but that the complainant’s statement doesn’t make a case of using criminal force to outrage her modesty.

“The unzipping is the problem more than urination… Of course it is revolting to go through something like this. But when someone unzips himself in a public place, there will be a driving intent for that. Here I am meeting a definite case,” Sharma told the court.

The Metropolitan Magistrate said the “alleged act in itself” was “sufficient to outrage the modesty of any woman.” The court added that “the accused did not join the investigations and … therefore, his conduct did not inspire confidence.” The court has reserved its order in the matter.

So far, seven witnesses have recorded their statements in the case.

Air India CEO Campbell Wilson on ‘urination’ incident

The airline CEO Campbell Wilson has expressed regret over the incident, and said that the airline will review its policy of serving alcohol on flights.

“Internal investigations into whether there were lapses by other staff are ongoing on aspects, including the service of alcohol on the flight, incident handling, complaint registration on board and grievance handling. As a responsible airline brand, we have initiated the following steps with a view to materially strengthen and improve how such incidents would be addressed in future,” Wilson said in a statement.

Air India also de-rostered four cabin crew members and a pilot.

Mishra, meanwhile, has been barred from flying with the airline for 30 days.