Five killed in small plane crash in US
Los Angeles, Aug 6 : Five persons have been killed after a small aircraft crashed in Santa Ana city in the US state of California, officials said.
The twin-engine aircraft on Sunday crashed near the South Coast Plaza shopping centre in Santa Ana city, according to the Orange County Fire Authority, Xinhua news agency reported.
The plane went down into the parking lot of a Staples Supercenter, City News Service reported. Medical group has been established to handle patient care and treatment, said the Orange County Fire Authority.
It was not clear if any people on the ground were injured in the incident.
The plane was registered to a San Francisco company and had flown from the East bay suburb of Concord, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records.
The FAA tweeted that a Cessna 414 declared an emergency landing and crashed in a mall parking lot near the John Wayne Orange County Airport.
The FAA launched an investigation into the crash and added that the National Transportation Safety Board will determine the cause.
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SC upholds inclusion of ‘secular, socialist’ in Preamble of Constitution
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday upheld the inclusion of the words ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ in the Preamble of the Constitution, confirming their retrospective application from November 26, 1949. The court ruled that the power to amend the Constitution under Article 368 extends to the Preamble, which is an integral part of the document.
A Bench led by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna stated, “The power under Article 368 cannot be curtailed. It will equally apply to the Preamble.” The 42nd Constitutional Amendment, which introduced these terms in 1976 during the Emergency, was challenged on grounds of its retrospective application and the lack of states’ ratification.
The petitioners, including BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, argued that the amendment forced a particular economic theory on the nation and violated the original intent of the Constitution. Advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay contended that the Preamble reflects the will of the people at the time of adoption in 1949 and is therefore unalterable.
The court dismissed these objections, affirming that both socialism and secularism are part of the Constitution's Basic Structure. The Bench clarified that socialism refers to a welfare state ensuring equality of opportunity without negating private sector participation or individualism. It emphasised that secularism is embedded in the Constitution, particularly in the principles of equality and fraternity.
Chief Justice Khanna remarked, “Secularism has always been a core feature of the Constitution.” He added that the amendment did not impose socialism as dogma but aligned with the welfare goals enshrined in various constitutional provisions.
