Praful Patel questioned at Chicago airport

Sep 29, 2010 - Age Correspondent |

New Delhi

In an incident that could be taken up by India through diplomatic channels with the US, minister of state for civil aviation Praful Patel was reportedly stopped for questioning by authorities at the Chicago airport in the United States after a case of mistaken identity but later allowed to go.

According to sources, the incident occurred after authorities at Chicago airport apparently had a lookout notice for someone with a “similar name and date of birth” as that of the minister. Indian diplomats in the US are understood to have intervened following which Mr Patel was allowed to leave.
The incident is understood to have taken place on Monday night.
The civil aviation ministry, however, sought to downplay the incident. In a statement, the civil aviation minister stated, “I’m in Montreal (Canada) and nothing serious happened ... There is a person with similar name and date of birth and that’s why they just double-checked.”

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