Ernakulam, Kerala: The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (DCDRC), Ernakulam recently ordered Qatar Airways to pay Rs 10 lakh as compensation to an Indian family for denying boarding to their minor children during their return journey from India to Italy.

The commission pointed out that the airline had accepted the family’s travel documents and allowed them to fly from Venice, Italy to Kochi, India, without any objection, Bar and Bench reported.

Read Also: Consumer Protection Authority Imposes Rs 1 Lakh Penalty On Storia Over ‘100% Coconut Water Claim’

However, the airline officials later refused boarding for their 6-year-old and breastfeeding infant during the return journey on the very same documents.

While ordering the compensation, the commission highlighted that such inconsistent conduct by the airways amounted to deficiency in service as well as unfair trade practice.

Read Also: Market Competition Regulator Imposes Rs 138 Crore Penalty On HP For Manipulating Govt Tenders

A Kerala native, Roshan Jose filed the complaint against the airline, claiming that the airline permitted him and his family by issuing boarding passes after verifying all documents to complete their journey from Venice to Kochi. However, when they reported for their return flight from Kochi to Venice via Doha on December 3, 2018, the airline officials kept them waiting for nearly two-and-a-half hours before refusing boarding to their 6-year-old child.

The airline said that he did not possess an independent Italian visa. Though the airline argued that passengers are responsible for carrying valid travel documents, the commission rejected it noting that if the children’s documents were indeed insufficient, then the airline should have refused to let them travel from Venice to India in the first place.