Power bank sparks 8-hour ordeal: Indian woman stripped, frisked by male officer at US airport

The Ministry of External Affairs has not yet issued a statement regarding the matter.

Indian entrepreneur Shruti Chaturvedi, founder of the India Action Project and public relations firm Chaaipani, has alleged she was subjected to distressing and discriminatory treatment at Anchorage Airport in Alaska, where she was detained for over eight hours by US authorities after security flagged a power bank in her luggage as “suspicious”.

Chaturvedi, who took to social media platform X to describe the ordeal, said it was the “worst” experience she had ever endured. In her post, she recounted how she was stripped of her warm clothing, denied access to her mobile phone and wallet, and held in a cold room without permission to make a phone call or use the restroom.

“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 power bank in handbag ‘suspicious’,” she wrote.

Chaturvedi tagged India’s Minister of External Affairs, S Jaishankar, and the Ministry itself, adding, “I don’t have to imagine, already past the worst 7 hours. And we all know why.”

The incident occurred when Chaturvedi had gone to drop off a friend at the airport. Her own flight was scheduled for later the same day. She told Hindustan Times that the ordeal began when her friend was stopped at security and sent her a text message saying her passport had been seized and she was being detained. “That was the last message I received from her,” Chaturvedi said. “After that, her phone was switched off.”

Concerned, Chaturvedi rushed to the airport to seek answers. In an unexpected turn of events, she too was detained.

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
April 8, 2025

In her detailed conversation with HT, she alleged that airport security not only flagged the power bank found in her friend’s bag but also manipulated evidence to justify their suspicion. “They actually took the power bank and one of the airport security personnel used duct tape and stuck it inside the cabin bag,” Chaturvedi claimed. “They took a picture just to fabricate evidence, which they gave to the FBI saying that ‘she was hiding the power bank with the duct tape.’”

Chaturvedi questioned the rationale of the detention, pointing out that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) permits passengers to carry power banks in hand luggage. “It was absolutely crazy,” she said.

She alleged that after the item was flagged, a bomb squad was summoned, followed by local police, and finally, FBI agents were called in to question them. “When we were inside, I requested the FBI officer who came for questioning if he could call my father or some parent and just inform them that I am here because I was in another country travelling and they must be worried. But they did not call,” she said.

During the detention, Chaturvedi and her friend were kept in separate rooms and interrogated in isolation. “Probably they must have matched our stories, checked our photographs in our phone gallery and things like that, and found that there was nothing suspicious,” she told the publication. “They really couldn't hold us after a while because we did nothing.”

She said she was eventually released when an officer informed her she could leave. A TSA agent apologised to her on the way out and attempted to downplay the racial aspect of the incident. “He was like, ‘Oh, just in case you think it's anything to do with your race, it doesn't,’” she recalled. “He tried to tell us that it had nothing to do with the colour of our skin. But of course, it had everything to do with the colour of our skin.”

Chaturvedi expressed her belief that she was racially profiled. Her claims resonated with many on social media, with users condemning the incident and asserting that it reflected the discriminatory treatment that some international travellers face at US airports.

The entrepreneur, who had been in Alaska to witness the Northern Lights, had earlier posted photographs of her trip on social media, captioning one of them: “Flew to Alaska, drove through the Dalton Highway, crossed the Arctic Circle, and watched the Northern Lights from room balcony on the night I was not prepared to see one.”

The Anchorage incident has further fuelled concerns over aggressive airport security protocols and perceived racial profiling, especially of travellers from South Asia and other minority communities. These concerns have previously been raised under former US President Donald Trump’s administration, prompting countries like Canada and Germany to issue travel advisories.

The Ministry of External Affairs has not yet issued a statement regarding the matter.