The MHA has called an urgent meeting after three Italian passengers travelled from Amritsar to Delhi and boarded a Lufthansa flight to Munich without completing immigration formalities.
The passengers were reportedly directed to the international-to-international transfer route at Delhi, despite being required to undergo immigration checks there.
MoCA has issued a show-cause notice to Air India, while senior officials will examine the procedural lapse and how the passengers bypassed mandatory clearance.
MHA Calls Urgent Meeting After 3 Italian Passengers Fly From Delhi Without Immigration Clearance
The meeting, scheduled for Tuesday evening, comes after the civil aviation ministry issued a show-cause notice to Air India on September 12 over the airline’s handling of the passengers
Summary
The Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) has called an urgent meeting of senior officials from the home and civil aviation ministries and other stakeholders after three Italian passengers travelled from Amritsar to Delhi and boarded a Lufthansa flight to Munich without completing mandatory immigration formalities, a Hindustan Times report said..
The meeting, scheduled for Tuesday evening, comes after the civil aviation ministry issued a show-cause notice to Air India on September 12 over the airline’s handling of the passengers. The incident took place on September 4.
Home Secretary To Chair Meeting On Security Lapse
Home Secretary Govind Mohan will chair the meeting at 7 pm at Kartavya Bhawan, the MHA office, the report stated. Those expected to attend include the civil aviation secretary and additional secretary, Intelligence Bureau director, home ministry secretary and additional secretary, Bureau of Immigration commissioner, Air India Group head and Delhi airport CEO.
The meeting has been convened to examine how the passengers were able to board an international flight without completing immigration checks at Delhi airport.
An official said the MHA had called the stakeholders to “discuss the incident” and assess the circumstances surrounding the lapse.
Air India and the civil aviation ministry did not comment on the matter. The airline had reportedly not responded to the show-cause notice as of Tuesday evening.
Passengers Were Directed To International Transfer
The three passengers travelled on an Air India flight from Amritsar to Delhi before boarding Lufthansa's international flight to Munich. According to people aware of the matter, they were issued two boarding passes at Amritsar — one for Delhi and another for the Lufthansa flight to Munich.
The passengers were required to complete immigration formalities at Delhi before boarding the international flight. However, they were allegedly directed towards the international-to-international (I-to-I) transfer route, allowing them to proceed without undergoing the mandatory immigration process.
The lapse appears to have originated at Amritsar airport, officials said.
The issue is significant because Amritsar is among the airports where the government has introduced a hub-and-spoke model for international travel. Under this arrangement, passengers complete immigration at the spoke or origin airport before travelling to a designated hub for their international connection. At the hub, they generally undergo security checks before boarding their onward international flight.
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In this case, however, the passengers travelled from Amritsar to Delhi before taking an international flight to Munich. Since the two flights were not covered by the applicable hub-and-spoke arrangement, they were required to complete immigration at Delhi, people aware of the matter said.
The MHA meeting is expected to examine the procedural lapse and determine how the passengers were allowed to bypass the required immigration checks.
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