VIP privileges at airports: Never frisked, sometimes driven to aircraft

Some, by virtue of being VIPs, are spared the need to be frisked at airports the way ordinary fliers are. Some VIPs are not only allowed to avoid frisking but also given an extra privilege: their vehicle can drive right up to the aircraft. Some others are ferried to the aircraft on health rather than security grounds.

The flier's position in politics, government or the judiciary usually determines the privileges he or she is entitled to, but there have been exceptional cases. At a time the government is planning to review such privileges, a look at some VIPs and how airports deal with them:

Judges

All Supreme Court judges are exempted from pre-embarkation security checks. Justice Dalveer Bhandari no longer holds that privilege, having been appointed a member of the International Court of Justice. Yet he enjoys the status of being "equivalent to a Supreme Court judge" and is therefore to be extended all other associated courtesies and protocol that SC judges are entitled to at airports.

The civil aviation ministry and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) have refused to include high court judges in the list of exemptions and referred the matter to the Supreme Court, where it is currently pending. This month, the ministry issued a directive to extend protocol to Justice Bhandari, but didn't include his name in the list of VIPs exempted from frisking. That would require the home ministry's approval.

Mayawati, not Mulayam

Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati is among those allowed to take their car right up to the aircraft, and with an armed escort. Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav doesn't have this privilege and neither has his father, former chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Mayawati's entitlements were finalised on a day of bargaining that saw three amendments to the civil aviation ministry's order before she was satisfied, said a ministry official. The first order allowed Mayawati's car along with her personal security officer. The second order added the phrase "for one year" and upset the BSP, whose MP Satish Mishra reportedly took it up. In the third directive, the phrase "for one year" was replaced with "until further orders", effectively making it what many view as a lifelong privilege. The third order also allowed an armed escort of four to six personnel.

... contd.

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