The MP allegedly delayed the flight by arriving late and, when the pilot objected, entered the flight deck prior to departure and called the pilot a 'glorified driver'. The MP had also threatened to unleash a 'breach of privilege motion' against the pilot - a committee of MPs can send the pilot to jail for allegedly insulting an important political functionary.

It takes an Indian airline pilot almost five to 10 years of rigorous training, thousands of hours of experience, with a minimum passing score of 80 per cent in numerous aviation subjects and various practical tests to qualify as a commander of an aircraft.� He is solely responsible for a machine worth millions of dollars and numerous human lives.� Every action he takes is recorded in a data recorder or a black box - no other job in the world requires a person to be more accountable.� He is directly responsible for his actions and mistakes could be deadly.� He is checked for his professional skills, mental and physical alertness every six months through rigorous tests.� He may have to undergo a preflight medical and a breathalyzer test prior to a flight.� A pilot has to work 24/7 despite inclement weather and adversity.� He cannot escape from his aircraft in an emergency and every decision has to be prompt and correct.

Unlike an MP, he cannot adjourn a flight or break tables and chairs and throw tantrums at fellow colleagues. He cannot plunder crores of public money and remain unaccountable. An MP in India requires no breathalyzer tests, no academic qualifications, no professional skills or medical tests and can get away scot-free even with a criminal background. And to top it all, Mr Wahab is a Non-Resident Indian - he does not even reside in India and hence, despite being a multimillionaire, does not pay a penny in taxes. And yet he travels at the expense of the taxpaying public.

�A pilot may be a 'glorified driver", just as an engineer is a 'glorified mechanic" and a surgeon a 'glorified butcher'. But MPs like Mr Wahab who blatantly misuse official privileges are worse. The spokesman for government-owned Air India, Mr Jitender Bhargava, well-known for his biased view on pilots, has already prematurely commented on the issue by saying that 'the customer is always right". Well, Mr Bhargava, the 9/11 hijackers were also 'customers" and we all know how 'right" they were, don't we ?

Pradeep Kripalani