GURGAON: An FIR was registered against three officials of IndiGo Airlines after a colleague accused them of subjecting him to caste-based harassment and humiliation at the company's corporate office in the city.
The case — under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and BNS — was initially filed as a zero FIR in Bengaluru, but was transferred to DLF-1 police station in Gurgaon. IndiGo Airlines did not respond to requests for comment on the FIR.
The complainant, a 35-year-old trainee pilot from Bengaluru, accused his seniors Tapas Dey, Manish Sahani, and Captain Rahul Patil of verbal abuse and discriminatory behaviour during a meeting on April 28 at Emaar Capital Tower 2 — where the airline is headquartered. The victim alleged that the harassment began immediately after he arrived in office when Dey demanded he leave his phone and bag outside in a "demeaning manner".
"His instruction set the tone for the abuse that followed," he said in his complaint.
The trainee pilot claimed that the three officials made casteist remarks during the 30-minute meeting from 3.30pm, which included statements like "you are not fit to fly an aircraft, go back and stitch slippers" and "you don't even have the worth to be a watchman here".
He alleged that the harassment continued for days and was designed to pressure him into resigning. "The statements they made were not only humiliating but clearly aimed at degrading my identity and status as a Scheduled Caste person," the complaint read.
The harassment allegedly extended beyond verbal abuse. It included "professional victimisation" through unjustified salary deductions, forced retraining sessions, revocation of travel privileges, and unwarranted warning letters. Despite escalating the matter to higher officials and the company's ethics committee, the complainant claimed no action was taken, compelling him to approach the SC/ST cell for legal intervention.
The FIR at DLF-1 police station was lodged under sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the SC/ST Act, which deal with intentional insults or intimidation meant to humiliate a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe member in public view. The case also included sections 351(2) (criminal intimidation), 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), and 3(5) (common intention) of BNS.
"We have begun collecting evidence and will soon record the statements of all parties involved," assistant sub-inspector Dalwinder Singh said.
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