Airport eye catches bribe duo

Calcutta: An Air India employee and a worker of the Airports Authority of India were caught on camera allegedly taking a bribe from a Myanmarese passenger at Calcutta airport this morning.

The commercial helper of Air India and the trolley puller employed on contract by the airport authority had taken Rs 1,300 from M. Kudu for “helping” him get his excess luggage cleared, a Central Industrial Security Force officer said.
Air India does the ground handling for Thai Airways here. Kudu was told at the check-in counter that he had around 10kg excess luggage. At this juncture, the duo approached him.
“They helped the passenger get clearance for his excess luggage and got the boarding pass for him, but after that they demanded Rs 1,300,” a CISF officer said. “The passenger refused to pay so much and an altercation followed,” a CISF official said.

Kudu relented and paid Rs 1,300, but by then Thai Airways had sniffed something amiss. When Kudu realised that the duo had taken a bribe from him, he said he would lodge a complaint with the airport authorities.
“During interrogation, we told them the closed-circuit television images had shown them taking the money from Kudu so they gave in and returned the cash in the presence of the our personnel and the Thai Airways officials,” a senior CISF officer said.

The duo were handed over to the police, who released them later. “Since the money was not in their possession, a bribery case was not started. Also, the passenger wrote in his complaint that he had paid the money but had also got it back,” said a police officer.

23/08/08 The Telegraph