Ex-IAS officer can’t digest stale peanuts, takes IA to the cleaners

April 20: It may seem like peanuts after a three-year legal bettle but the Rs 1,500 compensation awarded to a passenger of Indian Airlines...

April 20: It may seem like peanuts after a three-year legal bettle but the Rs 1,500 compensation awarded to a passenger of Indian Airlines is sweet victory. Retired IAS officer P C Singhi (71) was awarded the compensation by a consumer court for being served a packet of stale peanuts on an Ahmedabad-Calcutta flight, which caused him “mental and physical agony”. Presiding officers of the District Consumer Redressal Forum, Mumbai, R J Purandare and Mamata Kanade, observed that the airline had caused Singhi mental and physical agony and should be awarded Rs 1,500.

Singhi was flying from Ahmedabad to Calcutta via Jaipur on January 31, 1997, om IC-716 and like his co-passengers was served roasted peanuts immediately after take-off. However, after popping a few in his mouth, he felt very sick and threw up in the toilet. On further scrutiny, he noticed that the packet of peanuts was well past its expiry date. Singhi continued to suffer abdominal cramps and uneasiness and had to also skip his dinner on the plane.

On February 22, 1997, the septugenarian wrote to the chief manager, IA, in New Delhi, and received a written apology. The airline also offered him a free return air ticket anywhere in India, but he did not accept this offer. Instead, he filed a case in the consumer court, asking for Rs 50,000 as compensation. He says the Rs 1,500 “is not peanuts” but hopes the airline will not take its passengers lightly.

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After hearing both sides, the consumer court had observed: “The badly smelling peanuts caused unbearable pain in the complainant’s stomach and he vomitted heavily at Jaipur in the toilet of the plane itself, as he was not allowed to come out of the plane for reasons of security. He did reach Calcutta, but on the way he was continuously suffering from painful convulsions in the stomach and could not eat his dinner also.”

The presiding members further stated: “He was worried about more complications, like food poisoning, and the entire air travel became a physical torture and mental agony. His grievance is also that this must be as a result of culprits in catering department and catering agency.”

However, the IA representative had argued that no other passenger had complained about any such discomfort on eating the peanuts, and also denied that the stewardess endorsed Singhi’s statement, and must have not contradicted him out of good passenger relations practice.

Though it is unlikely that Singhi will ever accept peanuts on a flight again, he does give credit to the IA stewardess who checked his packet and advised him to lodge a complaint.