Discipline and mutual respect during air travel are basic principles that every passenger should follow. But sadly, what happened on Flight 540, a private airline flying from Quetta to Islamabad, not only trampled on this principle but also subjected a hard-working air hostess to physical abuse.
According to reports, the daughter of a former Quetta commissioner brutally assaulted an air hostess simply because she requested to fasten her seat belt and close the table. These are the same simple instructions that are given on every flight to ensure the safety of passengers.
But instead of the female passenger following these instructions, she not only misbehaved but took her misbehavior a step further and punched the air hostess in the face, injuring her, resulting in her nose bleeding and a tooth being broken.
This incident is not just an expression of individual anger but a reflection of our societal behavior, where some influential people consider the law as their footstool and consider themselves above all rules.
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The most saddening aspect of this incident is that the father of the attacker, a former commissioner, did not express any remorse or regret for his daughter’s behavior. Rather, due to his influence, an attempt was made to suppress the matter, and as a result, she was let go with a mere written apology.
Where is the justice in that an innocent air hostess, who was performing her duties, was subjected to violence and the attackers escaped only on the basis of an apology? Would an ordinary citizen have been treated with the same leniency if he had committed the same act? Unfortunately, in our country, law and justice have become the handmaidens of the powerful, where there are different rules for the common man and different ones for the influential.
This incident is not only condemnable but also raises a big question mark as to whether airlines will take any effective steps to ensure the safety of their crew? Will any strict laws be implemented to curb such incidents? Or, will this just become another news item that will be discussed for a few days and then forgotten by everyone?
Our government and the Civil Aviation Authority should take note of this incident and make strict laws to prevent such behavior in the future. To ensure the safety of air hostesses, travel bans should be imposed on those who commit any kind of misbehavior or violence during air travel.
Finally, we need to understand that people of any profession, be they air hostesses, doctors, police officers or teachers, all deserve respect. If we want respect and the rule of law in society, we must raise our voice against such shameful behaviors at all levels. Otherwise, we will continue to suffer the oppression of the powerful who consider every law unnecessary and every principle to be negligible for themselves.
