Man detained for 'joking' about terrorists on Kol-Mum flight

A man was detained and made to de-board a Jet Airways Kolkata-Mumbai flight on Monday after a co-passenger saw him covering his face with a handkerchief and keying in a message about terrorists over a messaging app, a CISF statement said.

Yogvedant Poddar, 21, had to get off the plane, which was preparing for take-off, after he was seen typing on his phone "Terrorist on flight, I destroy women hearts", it said.

Co-passenger Benjamin Plackett, who was sitting behind Poddar, noticed the message and immediately alerted the flight captain, who, in turn, reported the matter to the Jet Airways Duty Manager, the statement maintained.

The man was then detained by security officials of Jet Airways and his bags were re-examined.

"No suspicious or objectionable item was found in his bags. On questioning, Poddar said he was joking about terrorists with his friends," the CISF statement said.

CISF provides security to airports across the nation.

The 21-year-old resident of Beliaghata area in the city has been handed over to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport police station for further investigation, the statement said.

The Mumbai-bound flight, with 160 passengers on board, was delayed by more than an hour as the security staff carried out a thorough check before giving its clearance, it added.

A senior official of Airports Authority of India said the Jet Airways flight 9W 472 took off at 9.37pm.