Pilot not to be blamed, don't carry burden on yourself: SC to father of AI-171 pilot killed in crash
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New Delhi (PTI) The Supreme Court on Friday told the 91-year-old father of the pilot who died in the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad that his son is not to be blamed for the accident and he should not carry the burden on himself.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi issued notice to the Centre and the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on his plea.
"You should not carry burden on yourself. The pilot is not to be blamed for the plane crash. It was an accident. There is no insinuation against him even in the preliminary report," the bench said.
Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for the pilot's father, Pushkaraj Sabharwal, said there was a news article in US publication Wall Street Journal with regard to the pilot, Captain Sumeet Sabharwal.
"It was nasty reporting only to blame India," the bench responded.
It read out a paragraph from the preliminary report of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) issued on July 12 and said nowhere it is said that the pilot is to be blamed for the accident and it only refers to the conversation between the two pilots of the plane.
"The scope of the AAIB investigation is not to blame but to suggest preventive measures to avoid future tragedies. If necessary, we will clarify that the pilot cannot be blamed," the bench said.
The court listed the matter for further hearing on November 10, along with other pending petitions on the incident.
The June 12 plane crash claimed 260 lives -- 229 passengers, 12 crew members, and 19 people on the ground.
Last month, Pushkaraj Sabharwal and the Federation of Indian Pilots moved the Supreme Court for a court-monitored inquiry headed by a former apex court judge into the plane crash.
The nonagenarian has sought a "fair, transparent and technically robust" investigation into the tragic incident.
"An incomplete and prejudiced inquiry, without identification of the exact cause of the accident, endangers the lives of future passengers and undermines aviation safety at large, causing a violation of Article 21 of the Constitution," his plea said.
The petition, filed through AP&J Chambers on October 10, made Union Ministry of Civil Aviation, DGCA and AAIB respondents.
The plea seeks directions for the constitution of an independent committee, also comprising aviation and technical experts, to probe the crash.
The ill-fated aircraft had taken off from Ahmedabad for London Gatwick but crashed within minutes, impacting the BJ Medical College hostel located less than a nautical mile from the end of the runway.
The Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) failed to activate, and both the pilot-in-command Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and co-pilot Captain Clive Kunder lost their lives in the crash, the plea said.
New Delhi, Nov 7 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Friday told the 91-year-old father of the pilot who died in the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad that his son is not to be blamed for the accident and he should not carry the burden on himself.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi issued notice to the Centre and the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on his plea.
"You should not carry burden on yourself. The pilot is not to be blamed for the plane crash. It was an accident. There is no insinuation against him even in the preliminary report," the bench said.
Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for the pilot's father, Pushkaraj Sabharwal, said there was a news article in US publication Wall Street Journal with regard to the pilot, Captain Sumeet Sabharwal.
"It was nasty reporting only to blame India," the bench responded.
It read out a paragraph from the preliminary report of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) issued on July 12 and said nowhere it is said that the pilot is to be blamed for the accident and it only refers to the conversation between the two pilots of the plane.
"The scope of the AAIB investigation is not to blame but to suggest preventive measures to avoid future tragedies. If necessary, we will clarify that the pilot cannot be blamed," the bench said.
The court listed the matter for further hearing on November 10, along with other pending petitions on the incident.
The June 12 plane crash claimed 260 lives -- 229 passengers, 12 crew members, and 19 people on the ground.
Last month, Pushkaraj Sabharwal and the Federation of Indian Pilots moved the Supreme Court for a court-monitored inquiry headed by a former apex court judge into the plane crash.
The nonagenarian has sought a "fair, transparent and technically robust" investigation into the tragic incident.
"An incomplete and prejudiced inquiry, without identification of the exact cause of the accident, endangers the lives of future passengers and undermines aviation safety at large, causing a violation of Article 21 of the Constitution," his plea said.
The petition, filed through AP&J Chambers on October 10, made Union Ministry of Civil Aviation, DGCA and AAIB respondents.
The plea seeks directions for the constitution of an independent committee, also comprising aviation and technical experts, to probe the crash.
The ill-fated aircraft had taken off from Ahmedabad for London Gatwick but crashed within minutes, impacting the BJ Medical College hostel located less than a nautical mile from the end of the runway.
The Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) failed to activate, and both the pilot-in-command Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and co-pilot Captain Clive Kunder lost their lives in the crash, the plea said.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
