Bag scanning of international passengers is done routinely and the “privileges are not above law”, the Delhi customs said on Monday after a video by a Kashmiri journalist over her bag checking at the airport here went viral.
The response came after the journalist, Yana Mir, shared a video on X (formerly Twitter) of her bag’s checking by the customs officials on arrival at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport.
“Bag scanning of international passengers is done routinely. While other paxs put their luggage inside the scanner without any fuss Ms Yana Mir felt needlessly offended. Staff remained courteous throughout. Privileges are not above law. Footage tells the story,” the Delhi Customs (Airport and General) said on X, in reply to Mir’s post.
The department also shared video footage in its reply supporting its claim.
“Ms Yana Mir didn’t cooperate at all when requested to get her bags scanned. Her luggage was ultimately picked up by airline staff and Customs officer for scanning as seen in the footage,” it said in another reply.
Earlier in the day, Mir had shared a post along with the video of the bag scanning that had gone viral.
“How I was welcomed back to India: Madam scan your bag, open your bag, why you have Louis Vuitton shopping bags? Did you pay for them? Where are the bills???? “What Londoners think of me: INDIAN MEDIA WARRIOR. What Delhi customs thinks of me: Brand Smuggler,” her post read.
This incident comes a week after she had spoken at an event hosted by the Jammu and Kashmir Study Centre at the UK Parliament, where Yana Mir said that unlike Nobel Laureate and Pakistni activist Malala Yusufzai, who faced threats and had to leave her country, she feels free and secure in her homeland, India. She had said she is not Malala and is safe in India.
She objected to Malala's portrayal of India as oppressed and called out social media and international media figures who fabricate stories of oppression without visiting Indian Kashmir.
(With PTI inputs)
