GoAir and SpiceJet have joined IndiGo and Air India to keep Kunal Kamra off their planes for heckling journalist Arnab Goswami, putting the stand-up comedian in a no-fly list “until further notice”.

GoAir has suspended Mr. Kunal Kamra from flying with the airline till further notice @MoCA_GoI @DGCAIndia @HardeepSPuri @IndiGo6E

— GoAir (@goairlinesindia) January 29, 2020

On airline's decision to suspend him from flying, Kamra said it's not at all shocking to him. "Fact of the matter is that at no point was I disruptive and at no point did I not follow orders of the cabin crew or the captain...The only damage I caused was to the inflated ego to the 'journalist' Arnab Goswami," he tweeted.

"If expressing myself to an important public figure, who himself points a camera day in and day out...is a crime, then both of us are criminals," he added.

*My statement on my flight bans* pic.twitter.com/qWT2OawSmx

— Kunal Kamra (@kunalkamra88) January 29, 2020

Neither the aviation ministry nor the regulator DGCA has issued a directive to airlines to suspend Kamra, said people familiar with the matter.

But aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri condemned Kamra’s behaviour and advised airlines to impose restrictions on Kamra on Twitter On Tuesday after the comedian heckled Arnab Goswami, editor of the Republic TV news channel, on IndiGo's Mumbai-Lucknow flight.

GoAir, SpiceJet and Air India announced their decisions to suspend Kamra from flying on Twitter. IndiGo barred Kamra from flying for six months.

Full-service carrier Vistara has not barred Kamra yet. The airline said it stands firm with its zero-tolerance policy against any behaviour or act that compromises the safety, security and dignity of its customers and staff.

“We will review and follow due process in such cases,” it said in a statement.

Unless an official directive comes from the government, Vistara will not act against Kamra, said the persons quoted above. They spoke on the condition of anonymity.

In a video clip posted by Kamra on Twitter, he can be heard demanding Goswami, answer if he was a "coward or a journalist or a nationalist". Goswami maintained a calm demeanour, a far cry from his appearance on television.

First Published:Jan 29, 2020 1:07 PM IST