Calcutta: A consumer court has directed Air India to pay Rs 2 lakh each in compensation to two lawyers who had blamed loss of checked baggage for not being able to argue a case in the Supreme Court and consequently having their petition dismissed by the judge.
Dibakar Bhattacharya and Sanjay Pandit had flown Air India to Delhi on August 13, 2017, to represent their clients in a hearing that went haywire for them after two pieces of checked baggage did not arrive on the flight.
The duo said they entered the court with visitors' passes because the guards otherwise wouldn't let in anyone without a black gown. When the time came for the petition to be heard, the judge said they could not represent their clients without being in proper lawyers' attire.
"Air India failed to trace the bags containing their laptops, documents related to the case and lawyers' gowns," counsel N.R. Mukherjee told the West Bengal State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.
The legal team representing Air India said compensation for lost baggage would be paid to the two passengers in accordance with airline rules. The rate of compensation is Rs 450 for every kilo, based on which Bhattacharya and Pandit are entitled to Rs 11,700 for two lost bags weighing 26kg.
But Shyamal Gupta, the chairman of the commission, said in his order on Monday that this was more than just another case of material loss. "The petitioners also suffered professional indignity because the case-related documents and gowns were in their checked bags."
The commission referred to two previous consumer cases in its verdict.
Air India will have to pay the litigation fees incurred by the petitioners along with the compensation within 40 days of the order. "The petitioners should be paid 9 per cent interest in case the Air India authorities fail to pay the amount within the stipulated period. Air India will have to also pay Rs 10,000 each to the petitioners as cost of litigation," the order states.
A spokesperson for the airline declined comment, saying the case was sub judice. "The law will take its own course."