Cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle on Saturday slammed IndiGo for changing an elderly couple's seats on the flight. Taking to his official X account, he alleged that the couple had paid for seats in row 4 "so they wouldn't have to walk much". "Without an explanation, IndiGo changed it to seat 19," Mr Bhogle claimed.
"The gentleman was going to struggle to walk till row 19 in a narrow passage. But who cares," he added.
He said their original seats were restored after a few people pointed out the "immorality".
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"But, and this is the point, they had to make a noise otherwise Indigo was going to get them to walk till 19, and check after boarding was complete, if they could be assigned 4, which meant they would have to walk back," he said, adding that the elderly lady was "meekly complaining about how this is a common occurrence" and how it is "stressful" for people their age to travel IndiGo.
Another example of #IndigoFirstPassengerLast. An elderly couple on my flight had paid for seats in row 4 so they wouldn’t have to walk much. Without an explanation, #Indigo changed it to seat 19. The gentleman was going to struggle to walk till row 19 in a narrow passage. But who…
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) August 24, 2024
He also said that the lady wished "they didn't have a monopoly".
"Such a pity. I am sure IndiGo, you can sensitise your ground staff to put the passenger first occasionally. It was so disappointing to see how casually they were moving elderly passengers. With success comes responsibility. As someone who is proud of a successful Indian enterprise, I hope you can be more sensitive and not institutionalise this uncaring attitude," the Cricket commentator added.
IndiGo's Response
IndiGo responded to Harsha Bhogle, saying it “sincerely regrets the confusion that caused inconvenience to the customers”.
"Mr Bhogle, thank you for bringing this to our attention and taking the time to speak with us. We sincerely regret the confusion that caused inconvenience to the customers. Our crew quickly intervened, ensuring they travelled comfortably in their originally assigned seats.," the airline said.
IndiGo also said it reached out to the customers to address this personally.
We've also reached out to the customers to address this personally. We truly appreciate your understanding and look forward to serving you again soon. 2/2 ~Satyendra
— IndiGo (@IndiGo6E) August 24, 2024
"We truly appreciate your understanding and look forward to serving you again soon," it added.