CONSTITUTIONAL LAW AND SEX EQUALITY IN INDIA

If you're interested in how the Indian Supreme Court deals with issues of sex discrimination, check out this Times of India article on a challenge brought by Air India stewardesses concerning the airline's policy of forcing female stewardesses to retire at 50 but allowing stewards to remain employed eight years longer. Air India also grounds stewardesses at age 45, and some seniority and job oversight issues are involved as well. Apparently the Bombay High Court took a strong view of the constitutional requirements of sex equality and ruled against the airline, but the Supreme Court disagreed.

I haven't been able to find this case online yet, but I'm curious to see how both the state court and the Supreme Court dealt with these issues. From the limited information in the article, it seems to me that Air India's policies are clearly discriminatory. You might want to ask the folks at the airline about the litigation.

They're pretty proud of the appearance of their hostesses. Check out their description of what Air India air hostesses are supposed to be like:

An Air-India Air Hostess

An epitome of beauty, she is full of grace, radiates warmth and keeps you comfortable in every way. She is indeed Air India's hostess - which distinguishes her from her counterparts in other jobs.

A typical Air-India hostess is warm with a pleasing personality. A keen interest in people and places along with being dedicated and conscientious is what makes her unique. She is intelligent, committed, enthusiastic and creative. Her traditional welcome is like no other's and for her it is a pleasure more than a duty to serve you as a special guest aboard Air-India.

They left out, "and she is under 45." I suppose it's implied.

I don't know, but seems to me that the airline is on shaky ground here. I'll have to look into this some more.