Ilker Aycı has declined the offer to become the chief executive of Air India, he said on Tuesday, days after the announcement of his appointment led to opposition in India.
Former chair of Turkey’s national flag carrier, Turkish Airlines (THY), Aycı was last month named to helm Air India, subject to government clearance.
Aycı said he declined to take the post after reading about attempts "to color my appointment with undesirable colors" in some sections of the Indian media, according to an emailed statement seen by Daily Sabah.
“I have come to the conclusion that it would not be a feasible or an honorable decision to accept the position in the shadow of such a narrative,” he said.
A Hindu nationalist group close to India’s ruling party called on the government to block his appointment, citing his previous political links in Turkey.
Tata Group, the Indian conglomerate which announced Aycı’s appointment as CEO of previously state-run Air India, recently took over the debt-laden airline in a $2.4 billion equity and debt deal.
Aycı was due to take the role as of April 1. The appointment of a foreign national as CEO of an airline in India requires government clearance before it can proceed.
A spokesperson for India’s Tata confirmed the development, without sharing further details.
“I remain grateful to the Chairperson of Tata Group, Mr. N. Chadrasekaran and the Tata Group for extending to me the honor and the opportunity to lead Air India,” Aycı said.
“However, at a recent meeting with Mr. Chadrasekaran, chairperson of Tata Group, I regretfully informed him and I wish to inform the public, as well, that I will decline the position. It is with a heavy heart that I make this decision, and I wish Air India and the Tata Group, a global enterprise which I greatly admire, every success.”
Ashwani Mahajan, co-convenor of the Swadeshi Jagran Manch, which is seen as having a significant influence on Indian policy-making, had said the government must not approve Aycı’s appointment as Turkey had been sympathetic to India’s rival Pakistan.
Turkey has been voicing its support for Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region that is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full.
The Kashmir conflict is one of the oldest unresolved international problems in the world that has been on the agenda of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) since 1948.
India has long faced allegations of human rights abuse in its portion of the territory. It tightly controls access to Kashmir for foreign observers, including the U.N.
According to several human rights organizations, thousands of people have reportedly been killed in the conflict in the region since 1989.
Born in Istanbul in 1971, Aycı was also an adviser to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan when he was the mayor of Istanbul between 1994-1998.
In late January, he stepped down from his chief executive role at Turkish Airlines. Aycı had led the carrier since April 2015.
Ahmet Bolat was appointed as the new chairperson of the THY board and executive committee.
The move comes as a setback for India's Tata, which will need to restart the search for a CEO to turn around the loss-making carrier. While the airline has lucrative landing slots, any new chief faces an uphill task to upgrade Air India's aging fleet and turn around its financials and service levels.
