The Evening Wrap: DGCA issues showcause notice to SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh over snags

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Wednesday served a show cause notice to SpiceJet for its failure to offer “safe, efficient and reliable” air services. The regulator has also warned the airline that its permit to operate commercial flights in the country is valid only for one more year. The DGCA has given the accountable manager of SpiceJet, i.e. its chairman and managing director Ajay Singh, three weeks to respond to why action should not be taken against the airline. The notice comes a day after the airline faced at least three incidents, which included a diversion of a Delhi-Dubai flight to Karachi due to a fuel indicator malfunction, a cracked windshield on a Kandla-Mumbai flight, and a snag in the weather radar on its cargo aircraft flying from Kolkata to Chongqing forcing a turnback. The snags on Tuesday take the total incidents involving SpiceJet to 8 since May 1. “Whereas the reported incidents on aircraft operated by M/s SpiceJet Ltd. from 1st April 2022 till date have been reviewed and it has been observed that at number of occasions the aircraft either turned back to its originating station or continued landing to the destination with degraded safety margins,” says the notice from Director Air Safety at DGCA, Sanit Kumar. Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in a tweet said passenger safety was paramount and “even the smallest error hindering safety will be thoroughly investigated & course-corrected”. The DGCA blamed the safety lapses on poor internal safety oversight at SpiceJet, failure to undertake maintenance of its planes as well as the poor financial status. “Whereas, financial assessment carried out by DGCA in September, 2021 has also revealed that airline is operating on cash and carry and suppliers/ approved vendors are not being paid on regular basis leading to shortage of spares and frequent invoking of MELs [minimum equipment list].” An MEL is a document an airline seeks from a regulator to seek relief when all equipments on an aircraft are not operative. It spells out which pieces of equipment may be allowed to be inoperable along with any procedures that are required for an aircraft to operate under specific conditions while maintaining airworthiness. The regulator has also said that it has authorised SpiceJet to perform commercial operations upto May 16, 2023 — an implicit warning that its permit could be revoked. Kaali row | FIR against Trinamool MP Mahua Moitra in Madhya Pradesh Police in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday registered a case against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra over her remark about Goddess Kaali. The First Information Report (FIR) was registered at the crime branch police station in State capital Bhopal under section 295A of the Indian Penal Code (outraging religious feelings), an official said. The case was registered on the complaint of Ram Chandra, 52, a tea-seller and resident of Jehangirabad area of the city, said police station in-charge Anoop Uikey. Moitra’s statement terming Goddess Kaali as meat-eating and alcohol-accepting deity hurt his religious feelings, the complaint said. Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan alleged that the TMC MP’s statement “has hurt religious feelings of Hindus.” “We will not tolerate disrespect to any Hindu Gods and Goddesses at any cost,” he said in a statement. Moitra, MP from Krishnanagar, on Tuesday kicked up controversy at a conclave by saying that she had every right as an individual to imagine Goddess Kali as a meat-eating and alcohol-accepting deity, as each person had his or her unique way of offering prayers. The TMC MP was asked for response to outrage over a film poster that showed a woman dressed as Goddess Kali smoking a cigarette and holding a pride flag. Meanwhile, Moitra’s party has distanced itself from the remarks made by her on Kaali. “The comments made by @MahuaMoitra at the #IndiaTodayConclaveEast2022 and her views expressed on Goddess Kali have been made in her personal capacity and are NOT ENDORSED BY THE PARTY in ANY MANNER OR FORM. All-India Trinamool Congress strongly condemns such comments,” the party said in a statement on social media. TMC spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekar Ray reiterated the party line. He said that the party had emphatically said on Tuesday that the remark by Moitra was in her personal capacity and the party condemned it.”At the same time the party feels the way goddess Kaali has been depicted in a film poster outside India, smoking a cigarette, that is also deplorable and we condemn it,” the TMC spokesperson said. Moitra, while participating in a conclave arranged by a media house in Kolkata, had pointed to a poster depicting a “version of the Goddess”. “Kaali to me is a meat eating... alcohol accepting Goddess. To me, that is Kaali,” Moitra had said. The Krishnanagar MP took to Twitter to state that she did not back any poster. She suggested that those criticising her should visit Tarapith and see what offerings are made to the Goddess. “To all you sanghis — lying will NOT make you better hindus. I NEVER backed any film or poster or mention the word smoking. Suggest you visit my Maa Kali in Tarapith to see what food & drink is offered as bhog. Joy Ma Tara,” she tweeted. Earlier in the day, State BJP unit Mahila Morcha president Tanuja Chakraborty lodged a complaint against the Krishnanagar MP at Kolkata’s Bowbazar Police Station. “Bring it on BJP! Am a Kali worshipper. I am not afraid of anything. Not your ignoramuses. Not your goons. Not your police. And most certainly not your trolls. Truth doesn’t need back up forces,” Moitra tweeted. In another tweet, she added, “The goddess Bengalis worship is fearless & non-appeasing”. A number of BJP leaders, including party’s State president Sukanta Majumdar and Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, have criticised Moitra and demanded her arrest. BJP Mahila Morcha supporters also held protests against the TMC MP in the city. Kaali row | Aga Khan Museum removes presentation of documentary, regrets causing offence to Hindus The Aga Khan Museum in Toronto has said it “deeply regrets” causing offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities and has removed the presentation of the documentary ‘Kaali’, after the Indian mission in Ottawa urged the Canadian authorities to take down all “provocative material” related to the controversial film. Toronto-based filmmaker Leena Manimekalai shared the poster of her documentary ‘Kaali’ on Twitter on Saturday which shows the goddess smoking and holding an LGBTQ flag in her hand. The poster led to a social media storm with the hashtag ‘Arrest Leena Manimekalai’, and allegations that the filmmaker had hurt religious sentiments. A member of a group going by the name ‘Gau Mahasabha’ said he had filed a complaint with Delhi Police. Responding to the uproar on Twitter, the museum said in a statement that it “deeply regrets” that Kaali had “inadvertently caused offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities.” “Toronto Metropolitan University brought together works from students of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, each student exploring their individual sense of belonging as part of Canadian multiculturalism for the project ‘Under the Tent’, it said on Tuesday. “Toronto Metropolitan University’s project presentation was hosted once at the Aga Khan Museum on July 2, 2022 in the context of the Museum’s mission to foster intercultural understanding and dialogue through the arts,” it said. Respect for diverse religious expressions and faith communities forms an integral part of that mission. The presentation is no longer being shown at the Museum, the statement read. “The Museum deeply regrets that one of the 18 short videos from ‘Under the Tent’ and its accompanying social media post have inadvertently caused offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities,” it added. The museum response came after the High Commission of India in Ottawa on Monday said that it had received complaints from leaders of the Hindu community in Canada about the “disrespectful depiction of Hindu Gods” on the poster of the film showcased as part of the ‘Under the Tent’ project at the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto. “Our Consulate General in Toronto has conveyed these concerns to the organisers of the event. We are also informed that several Hindu groups have approached authorities in Canada to take action,” the statement read. “We urge the Canadian authorities and the event organisers to withdraw all such provocative material,” it added. Social media platform Twitter has also pulled down filmmaker Leena Manimekalai’s tweet about her documentary “Kaali”, in response to “a legal demand”. “This Tweet from @LeenaManimekali has been withheld in India in response to a legal demand,” read a message in place of the original post. It is unknown when the tweet was taken down by the microblogging site. Manimekalai, who was born in Madurai in Tamil Nadu, on Monday said she will continue to use her voice fearlessly till she is alive. “I have nothing to lose. Till the time I live, I wish to live with a voice that speaks what I believe without fear. If the price for that is my life, it can be given,” Manimekalai wrote in a Twitter post in Tamil in response to an article on the controversy. “The film is about the events during Kaali’s strolls through the streets of Toronto city one fine evening. If they watch the movie, they will put the hashtag ‘love you Leena Manimekalai’ rather than ‘Arrest Leena Manimekalai’,” she added in reply to another article. Manimekalai, who made her feature directorial debut with 2021’s “Maadathy -- An Unfairy Tale”, isn’t the first filmmaker to find herself in trouble over religious references. In 2017, for instance, filmmaker Sanal Kumar Sasidharan courted controversy over the title of his Malayalam film ‘Sexy Durga’, which explored religious divides in Kerala society. The film was later rechristened ‘S Durga’. ‘Kaali’ is yet to be shown to Indian audiences. Rahul Gandhi video case: SC to hear TV anchor Rohit Ranjan’s appeal on Thursday Television anchor Rohit Ranjan on Wednesday made an urgent mentioning in the Supreme Court seeking protection in connection with multiple First Information Reports (FIRs) lodged against him. Ranjan has been facing fire for the telecast of an allegedly doctored video of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. “This is the case of a TV anchor. He made an error in one of his shows. He has apologised unconditionally... Issued a public apology, but is facing multiple FIRs. The Noida Police has questioned him and released him on bail. The Chhattisgarh Police is seeking to arrest him... We seek an urgent listing,” senior advocate Siddharth Luthra submitted before a Vacation Bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and J.K. Maheshwari during an oral mentioning. The court agreed to hear the case on Thursday, but took exception, minutes later, to the fact that the application had not yet been filed in the Supreme Court. The advocate-on-record said the application was in the process of being numbered by the registry. Ranjan had already been subject to around 12 hours of questioning by the Gautam Buddha Nagar Police, who released him on bail. The Noida Police had whisked Ranjan away from his Ghaziabad residence on Tuesday morning, leaving the Chhattisgarh police stranded. The Raipur Police had a non-bailable warrant against Ranjan. In Brief The Rajasthan police arrested a history-sheeter, Salman Chishti, who had allegedly offered to give away his house and property to anyone who beheaded suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma, in Ajmer late on Tuesday night. He is also a khadim (worker) at the historic dargah of Sufi mystic Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer. Salman Chishti had recorded his announcement before the gruesome murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur on June 28, but the video was circulated later, when it was reported to the police. He was on the run since the police registered a case against him earlier this week. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow [logo] The Evening Wrap 06 JULY 2022 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( DGCA issues showcause notice to SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh over snags  The Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Wednesday [served a show cause notice to SpiceJet for its failure to offer “safe, efficient and reliable” air services](. The regulator has also warned the airline that its permit to operate commercial flights in the country is valid only for one more year. The DGCA has given the accountable manager of SpiceJet, i.e. its chairman and managing director Ajay Singh, three weeks to respond to why action should not be taken against the airline. [Dubai-bound SpiceJet Boeing 737 Max aircraft after its landing following a fuel indicator malfunction at Karachi Airport. Photo: Twitter/@ghulamabbasshah via PTI] The notice comes a day after the airline faced at least three incidents, which included a diversion of a Delhi-Dubai flight to Karachi due to a fuel indicator malfunction, a cracked windshield on a Kandla-Mumbai flight, and a snag in the weather radar on its cargo aircraft flying from Kolkata to Chongqing forcing a turnback. The snags on Tuesday take the total incidents involving SpiceJet to 8 since May 1. “Whereas the reported incidents on aircraft operated by M/s SpiceJet Ltd. from 1st April 2022 till date have been reviewed and it has been observed that at number of occasions the aircraft either turned back to its originating station or continued landing to the destination with degraded safety margins,” says the notice from Director Air Safety at DGCA, Sanit Kumar. Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in a tweet said passenger safety was paramount and “even the smallest error hindering safety will be thoroughly investigated & course-corrected”. The DGCA blamed the safety lapses on poor internal safety oversight at SpiceJet, failure to undertake maintenance of its planes as well as the poor financial status. “Whereas, financial assessment carried out by DGCA in September, 2021 has also revealed that airline is operating on cash and carry and suppliers/ approved vendors are not being paid on regular basis leading to shortage of spares and frequent invoking of MELs [minimum equipment list].” An MEL is a document an airline seeks from a regulator to seek relief when all equipments on an aircraft are not operative. It spells out which pieces of equipment may be allowed to be inoperable along with any procedures that are required for an aircraft to operate under specific conditions while maintaining airworthiness. The regulator has also said that it has authorised SpiceJet to perform commercial operations upto May 16, 2023 — an implicit warning that its permit could be revoked. Kaali row | FIR against Trinamool MP Mahua Moitra in Madhya Pradesh Police in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday [registered a case against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra]( over her remark about Goddess Kaali. The First Information Report (FIR) was registered at the crime branch police station in State capital Bhopal under section 295A of the Indian Penal Code (outraging religious feelings), an official said. The case was registered on the complaint of Ram Chandra, 52, a tea-seller and resident of Jehangirabad area of the city, said police station in-charge Anoop Uikey. Moitra’s statement terming Goddess Kaali as meat-eating and alcohol-accepting deity hurt his religious feelings, the complaint said. Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan alleged that the TMC MP’s statement “has hurt religious feelings of Hindus.” “We will not tolerate disrespect to any Hindu Gods and Goddesses at any cost,” he said in a statement. Moitra, MP from Krishnanagar, on Tuesday kicked up controversy at a conclave by saying that she had every right as an individual to imagine Goddess Kali as a meat-eating and alcohol-accepting deity, as each person had his or her unique way of offering prayers. The TMC MP was asked for response to outrage over a film poster that showed a woman dressed as Goddess Kali smoking a cigarette and holding a pride flag. Meanwhile, Moitra’s party has distanced itself from the remarks made by her on Kaali. “The comments made by @MahuaMoitra at the #IndiaTodayConclaveEast2022 and her views expressed on Goddess Kali have been made in her personal capacity and are NOT ENDORSED BY THE PARTY in ANY MANNER OR FORM. All-India Trinamool Congress strongly condemns such comments,” the party said in a statement on social media. TMC spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekar Ray [reiterated the party line](. He said that the party had emphatically said on Tuesday that the remark by Moitra was in her personal capacity and the party condemned it.”At the same time the party feels the way goddess Kaali has been depicted in a film poster outside India, smoking a cigarette, that is also deplorable and we condemn it,” the TMC spokesperson said.   Moitra, while participating in a conclave arranged by a media house in Kolkata, had pointed to a poster depicting a “version of the Goddess”. “Kaali to me is a meat eating... alcohol accepting Goddess. To me, that is Kaali,” Moitra had said. The Krishnanagar MP took to Twitter to state that she did not back any poster. She suggested that those criticising her should visit Tarapith and see what offerings are made to the Goddess. “To all you sanghis — lying will NOT make you better hindus. I NEVER backed any film or poster or mention the word smoking. Suggest you visit my Maa Kali in Tarapith to see what food & drink is offered as bhog. Joy Ma Tara,” she tweeted. Earlier in the day, State BJP unit Mahila Morcha president Tanuja Chakraborty lodged a complaint against the Krishnanagar MP at Kolkata’s Bowbazar Police Station. “Bring it on BJP!  Am a Kali worshipper. I am not afraid of anything. Not your ignoramuses. Not your goons. Not your police. And most certainly not your trolls. Truth doesn’t need back up forces,” Moitra tweeted. In another tweet, she added, “The goddess Bengalis worship is fearless & non-appeasing”.  A number of BJP leaders, including party’s State president Sukanta Majumdar and Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, have criticised Moitra and demanded her arrest. BJP Mahila Morcha supporters also held protests against the TMC MP in the city. Kaali row | Aga Khan Museum removes presentation of documentary, regrets causing offence to Hindus The Aga Khan Museum in Toronto has said it “deeply regrets” causing offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities and has [removed the presentation of the documentary ‘Kaali’]( after the Indian mission in Ottawa urged the Canadian authorities to take down all “provocative material” related to the controversial film. Toronto-based filmmaker Leena Manimekalai shared the poster of her documentary ‘Kaali’ on Twitter on Saturday which shows the goddess smoking and holding an LGBTQ flag in her hand. [Photo: Facebook/lmanimekalai] The poster led to a social media storm with the hashtag ‘Arrest Leena Manimekalai’, and allegations that the filmmaker had hurt religious sentiments. A member of a group going by the name ‘Gau Mahasabha’ said he had filed a complaint with Delhi Police. Responding to the uproar on Twitter, the museum said in a statement that it “deeply regrets” that Kaali had “inadvertently caused offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities.” “Toronto Metropolitan University brought together works from students of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, each student exploring their individual sense of belonging as part of Canadian multiculturalism for the project ‘Under the Tent’, it said on Tuesday. “Toronto Metropolitan University’s project presentation was hosted once at the Aga Khan Museum on July 2, 2022 in the context of the Museum’s mission to foster intercultural understanding and dialogue through the arts,” it said. Respect for diverse religious expressions and faith communities forms an integral part of that mission. The presentation is no longer being shown at the Museum, the statement read. “The Museum deeply regrets that one of the 18 short videos from ‘Under the Tent’ and its accompanying social media post have inadvertently caused offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities,” it added. The museum response came after the High Commission of India in Ottawa on Monday said that it had received complaints from leaders of the Hindu community in Canada about the “disrespectful depiction of Hindu Gods” on the poster of the film showcased as part of the ‘Under the Tent’ project at the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto. “Our Consulate General in Toronto has conveyed these concerns to the organisers of the event. We are also informed that several Hindu groups have approached authorities in Canada to take action,” the statement read. “We urge the Canadian authorities and the event organisers to withdraw all such provocative material,” it added. Social media platform Twitter has also pulled down filmmaker Leena Manimekalai’s tweet about her documentary “Kaali”, in response to “a legal demand”. “This Tweet from @LeenaManimekali has been withheld in India in response to a legal demand,” read a message in place of the original post. It is unknown when the tweet was taken down by the microblogging site. Manimekalai, who was born in Madurai in Tamil Nadu, on Monday said she will continue to use her voice fearlessly till she is alive. “I have nothing to lose. Till the time I live, I wish to live with a voice that speaks what I believe without fear. If the price for that is my life, it can be given,” Manimekalai wrote in a Twitter post in Tamil in response to an article on the controversy. “The film is about the events during Kaali’s strolls through the streets of Toronto city one fine evening. If they watch the movie, they will put the hashtag ‘love you Leena Manimekalai’ rather than ‘Arrest Leena Manimekalai’,” she added in reply to another article. Manimekalai, who made her feature directorial debut with 2021’s “Maadathy -- An Unfairy Tale”, isn’t the first filmmaker to find herself in trouble over religious references. In 2017, for instance, filmmaker Sanal Kumar Sasidharan courted controversy over the title of his Malayalam film ‘Sexy Durga’, which explored religious divides in Kerala society. The film was later rechristened ‘S Durga’. ‘Kaali’ is yet to be shown to Indian audiences. Rahul Gandhi video case: SC to hear TV anchor Rohit Ranjan’s appeal on Thursday Television anchor Rohit Ranjan on Wednesday [made an urgent mentioning in the Supreme Court]( seeking protection in connection with multiple First Information Reports (FIRs) lodged against him. Ranjan has been facing fire for the telecast of an allegedly doctored video of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. “This is the case of a TV anchor. He made an error in one of his shows. He has apologised unconditionally... Issued a public apology, but is facing multiple FIRs. The Noida Police has questioned him and released him on bail. The Chhattisgarh Police is seeking to arrest him... We seek an urgent listing,” senior advocate Siddharth Luthra submitted before a Vacation Bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and J.K. Maheshwari during an oral mentioning. The court agreed to hear the case on Thursday, but took exception, minutes later, to the fact that the application had not yet been filed in the Supreme Court. The advocate-on-record said the application was in the process of being numbered by the registry. Ranjan had already been subject to around 12 hours of questioning by the Gautam Buddha Nagar Police, who released him on bail. The Noida Police had whisked Ranjan away from his Ghaziabad residence on Tuesday morning, leaving the Chhattisgarh police stranded. The Raipur Police had a non-bailable warrant against Ranjan. In Brief The Rajasthan police arrested a history-sheeter, [Salman Chishti]( who had allegedly offered to give away his house and property to anyone who beheaded suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma, in Ajmer late on Tuesday night. He is also a khadim (worker) at the historic dargah of Sufi mystic Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer. Salman Chishti had recorded his announcement before the gruesome murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur on June 28, but the video was circulated later, when it was reported to the police. He was on the run since the police registered a case against him earlier this week. 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