Flight delays are nothing unusual at Pakistan’s ailing state carrier, Pakistan International Airlines, long hobbled by political interference, a bloated staff and epic financial losses.
However, the delayed departure of one flight on Monday caused several enraged passengers to mount a virtual mutiny and eject one politician and block another from the plane before it could even take off.
The incident occurred at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi when former Pakistani interior minister Rehman Malik, best known for his colorful ties and erratic pronouncements, turned up two hours late for a flight to Islamabad.
The airline often delays flights to accommodate tardy politicians and senior bureaucrats, which is seen as one reason for its patchy operational performance.
Jeering passengers stood at the entrance to the airplane, blocking Malik’s way, witnesses said. He turned back and did not board the flight, and videos of the protesting passengers went viral on social media on Monday evening.
Malik later denied that he was responsible for the drama, and blamed his political opponents.
“I felt the drama was created by some passengers who were PTI folks,” he said in an interview on Tuesday, referring to members of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf led by politician Imran Khan.
Malik said he had gone to the airport late because airline staff told him the flight would be delayed.
“The delay was not due to me,” Malik said. “I myself suffered because of the airline’s mismanagement.”
A spokesman for the airline appeared to corroborate Malik’s account, saying the flight had been delayed by at least 90 minutes because of technical problems, and then an additional half-hour for unknown reasons.
In the widely distributed videos of the fracas, Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) lawmaker Ramesh Kumar Vankwani could also be seen being booed and heckled by passengers as he walked onto the plane.
Passengers surrounded Vankwani’s window seat and, after confirming that he was a member of parliament, shouted “Shame, shame!” before he got off the plane.
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