Shankar Mishra, the man accused of urinating on a female co-passenger on an Air India flight from New York, on Friday shared messages with the woman to claim that she had "condoned" the alleged act and had shown no intention to file a complaint.
In a shocking incident, Mishra, in an inebriated condition, allegedly urinated on his female co-passenger, a senior citizen in her seventies, in the business class of an Air India New York-Delhi flight on November 26 last year.
In a statement issued through his lawyers Ishanee Sharma and Akshat Bajpai, Mishra said he had got the woman's clothes and bags cleaned on November 28 and the same were delivered to her on November 30.
"The Whatsapp messages between the accused and the lady clearly show that the accused had got the clothes and bags cleaned on November 28 and the same were delivered on November 30.
"The lady in her message has clearly condoned the alleged act and has displayed no intention to lodge a complaint. The lady's persisting grievance was only with respect to the adequate compensation being paid by the Airline for which she has raised a subsequent complaint on December 20, 2022," the statement read.
It said the accused paid the compensation as agreed between the parties on Paytym on November 28 but after almost a month on December 19 her daughter returned the money.
"The statements recorded before the inquiry committee by the cabin crew show that there is no eyewitness to the incident and all the statements are merely heresay (sic) evidence. The settlement reached between the parties has also been affirmed in the statements so submitted by the cabin crew.
"The accused has full faith in the judicial system of the country and will cooperate with the investigation process," the statement read.
According to the FIR registered on Wednesday, the woman had informed the crew that she did not want to see her tormentor's face and was "stunned" when the offender was brought before her and he "started crying and profusely apologising".
US financial services company Wells Fargo, Mishra's employer, has terminated him, saying the allegations were "deeply disturbing".