IAS Officer Tears Down British Airways For Discriminatory Practice Of Downgrading Seats: ‘Are You Cheating?’

IAS officer Ashwini Bhide, known for the Aqua Line of the Mumbai Metro, made a scathing post over downgraded seats by British Airways. Posting on X/Twitter, Mrs. Bhide, who is the current Additional Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), narrated her ordeal as the airline downgraded her premium economy at the check-in counter. According to the bureaucrat, the airline cited overbooking. Mrs. Bhide slammed British Airways for downgrading under false pretext without even paying the price difference or offering compensation for the same. ‘Are you cheating?’ she questioned the airlines, ‘or following racist or discriminatory policies?’ Meanwhile, the company responded to Bhide, amid a hoard of complaints, stating that the downgrade was due to overbooking and that she was entitled to the fair difference.

Are you cheating or following discriminatory/racist policies @British_Airways ? How come u downgrade a premium economy passenger at check-in counter on false pretext of overbooking without even paying price difference forget about compensation? I’m told this is a common…

— Ashwini Bhide (@AshwiniBhide) January 12, 2024

Netizens reacted to Mrs. Bhide’s post, calling out the airline for its racist practices. ‘Colonial hangover’ wrote one user, as others narrated similar ordeals they faced aboard British Airways. A few others chided the IAS officer for traveling with a foreign airliner instead of Air India or Air Vistara. Netizens also praised her for taking a stand and calling a spade a spade.

They are still under colonial hangover…they will always look down on Indians…use other options…

— Suresh Kumar (@kumarvcs) January 13, 2024

As a bureaucrat you should have flown either Air India or Air Vistara, both of which are Indian flag carriers. Now having flown them, good of you to have asked them on their face, if it’s discrimination. It certainly is. You should know the history of Britain. Racist to the core.

— WhiteLilly837 (@WLilly837) January 15, 2024

I once had business class upgraded on BA. And they treated me ‘not even at’ an economy level. Was never interested to attend me at all. Since then I avoid as much as possible. Though last year I had to take as it was the only direct flight to London from Bangalore.

— Tinu Cherian Abraham (@tinucherian) January 14, 2024

Nice to find Indians asserting n calling spade a spade. Hope many passengers would like to be reassured or refuse to take this airline.

— Mahesh Poddar (@maheshpoddarmp) January 15, 2024

Ashwini Bhide is an IAS officer from the 1995 batch and is known for her work on Line 3 of the Mumbai Metro, also known as the Aqua Line. From 2015 until 2020, she was the MD of the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRCL). In January 2020, amid protests over her orders for felling trees in the Aarey Colony in Mumbai, Bhide, along with 20 other IAS officers, were transferred by the newly formed government led by Uddhav Thackeray. Her defense of the Colaba-Bandra-Seepz Metro-3 car shed was opposed by activists, celebrities, and several political parties. She was reinstated in a major reshuffle by the newly formed government under CM Eknath Shinde and deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.