YOUR PREJUDICES DON'T DEFINE US 
I am sharing a bad experience that happened at Bangalore airport with 2 male Sri Lankan Airlines staff. They put a dampener on our happiness and tried to ruin our much deserved vacation.

It had been a dream for us to have a vacation to the Maldives with our whole family, including my son Advaith who has autism.
We planned a holiday to Maldives for 3 nights and 4 days.

Our tour advisor booked our ticket through Sri Lankan Airlines.
Bangalore – Colombo - Maldives
Boarding from Bangalore at 2:30 AM  
Boarding from Colombo to Male at 6:20 AM

We put in good effort in preparing our son for the travel as the flight timings were odd. We were booked on this itinerary because this  was the most convenient.

As per the information we received, we informed BLR Airport that we would need assistance for my differently abled child.
The terminal manager had informed the airline about our child and the airline had made no special demands.
We wanted to do the check-in procedure at the earliest so that we could handle our child well after checking in.
We again prepared my son with a ppt, With lots of joy, we started from home and reached the airport on 16th night at 11:30 PM. We waited there as the counter was not open yet.
When the counter was open, we were there at first and wanted to proceed with check-in.
Two men from Sri Lankan Airlines at the counter started staring at my son who was very excited and happy. They asked if he had ever been on a flight before and we said that he had been on many occasions.
They asked for his disability card which we showed promptly. Their ignorance led them to believe that our son was not “normal” enough to travel on a flight with other “normal” people.
They said that it would put the crew and other passengers at risk. They asked us to obtain our previous passport even though we had a new valid passport. They asked us why we didn’t get a letter
from the doctor who was treating him. We explained calmly that autism was not a disease to be treated and that he was not under the care of any doctor, and neither was he on any medication.
They addressed all of us with a complete lack of empathy and common decency. When my husband tried to take a video of the unfolding events they became very angry and uncooperative and said that they would not help us at all until we deleted the video. At that time, my focus was to keep Addu calm without increasing his anxiety. So we gave the phone, and they deleted that video. My son carries a helmet which he is emotionally attached to but we knew that if we asked him he would give it for security screening.  But the two staff members said that it would not be allowed on the flight. All the security checks in every airport we’ve been to have allowed him to carry the helmet. Then they started saying that my son may scream or shout during take off, and that will be a disturbance for the pilot and so they need permission from the pilot too. I was shocked and asked them how they could possibly know that my son would do any such thing. Advaith really enjoys travelling on flights and has never caused any issues before.

They forced us to wait for almost one and a half hours for the email to be approved without understanding what it means to make a child with autism stay constrained for that long.
I wish to make it clear that during this time my son did not engage in any behaviour that would raise the question of security of other passengers. Even when told to wait for more than an hour he remained calm and composed. This should prove without a doubt that the actions of the 2 staff members were completely unprofessional and uncalled for.

The approval came at 1:22 a.m. 
The terminal manager at BLR airport, Ms Roopa was most helpful and supported us the whole time. The staff at the airports in Colombo and Male were extremely cooperative and did not raise any issues. We were extremely happy with the conduct of Sri Lankan airlines as the staff at the other airports were very supportive but we feel indignant about the behaviour of these two staff members.

My question is “What threat did these 2 men see in my son? “
I say the only threat is their own ignorance.

I need a clear explanation from these 2 Sri Lankan airline staff members.
Where in the rule book does it say that a special child needs to be denied boarding; are they not human beings themselves?
They were trying to enforce their prejudices by hiding behind these rules.
Corrective action is undoubtedly needed.

We ask to take strict action against these 2 staff members immediately as their conduct was unworthy of your respectable airline. 
Those 2 Sri Lankan airlines staff had ruined our happiness and created mental harassment. We were very stressed and upset at that time. Thankfully, Advaith was relaxed and happy. I was worried when they started creating issues  like this because Advaith could understand everything that they said and this could  lead to anxiety issues. But Advaith handled it very well. My BP shot up and I got a severe headache and giddiness. Thankfully my BP medicine was in my hand baggage, so I took it and tried to relax. After all this unnecessary confusion, they allowed us to board.
As usual Advaith enjoyed himself and he behaved very well throughout the journey to Maldives. We had a great vacation filled with precious memories.
But I don't want any other parents to face these types of issues while travelling with their children. So I am moving ahead and raising a complaint against these 2 people. I hope you all will support us.
Smrithy Rajesh