‘Physically Checked By Male Officer, Made To Miss Flight’: Indian Woman Alleges 8-Hour Detention At US Airport
Indian entrepreneur Shruti Chaturvedi has alleged that she was detained for eight hours at Anchorage Airport in Alaska, where she was stripped of her warm clothes, denied access to a phone call, and physically searched by a male Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) officer—reportedly over a power bank found in her handbag.
Chaturvedi, the founder of Indian Action Project and Chaaipani, took to social media platform X to share her ordeal. She claimed the situation escalated after airport security deemed the power bank in her handbag “suspicious.”
In a now-viral post, she wrote: “Imagine being detained by Police and FBI for 8 hours, being questioned the most ridiculous things, physically checked by a male officer on camera, stripped off warm wear, mobile phone, wallet, kept in chilled room, not allowed to use a restroom, or make a single phone call, made to miss your flight - all because the airport security found your powerbank in handbag ‘suspicious.’”
Describing her experience as the “worst” seven hours, she added, “I don’t have to imagine, already past the worst 7 hours. And we all know why,” while tagging the Ministry of External Affairs in her post.
According to her, she was taken to a cold room, denied the use of a restroom, and not permitted to contact anyone in India.
Kept Whole Luggage Bag After 8 Hours Of Nonsense And Not Finding Anything, Woman Claims
She further alleged that despite not finding anything incriminating, officials held her and a friend for several hours and confiscated her luggage, returning only a “frivolous duffle” bag.
In a follow-up post shared after leaving the United States, she wrote: “Hi! I am alright and posted this only after I was out of the USA. They let me and my friend go after 8 hours of nonsense and not finding anything. They still kept the whole luggage bag and gave a frivolous duffle to keep the luggage. Anyway - the point is - outside of India, Indians are pretty powerless. Especially when you aren’t even allowed to make a phone call to anyone in India.”
Chaturvedi’s account has drawn strong reactions on social media, with several users expressing concern over the alleged mistreatment of Indian citizens abroad.
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