First-time flyer held for smoking ‘beedi’ inside plane

Bengaluru: A first-time flyer from Rajasthan has been arrested at the Kempegowda International Airport here on charges of smoking ‘Beedi’ on the Bengaluru-bound Akasa Air flight, police said on Wednesday.

The 56-year-old from Marwar region had boarded the plane at Ahmedabad on Tuesday. Mid-air, he went to the lavatory and smoked, police said.

They added that flight attendants swung into action quickly, held him and, on reaching Bengaluru, handed him over to the police.

During interrogation, the passenger told police that he was travelling by flight for the first time and did not know about the rules. He also said that during train travels he used to smoke in toilets and tried the same on the plane.

The passenger has been booked on charges of endangering lives of others, police said.