Kolkata/New Delhi, Jun 7: Eight passengers on Vistara's Mumbai-Kolkata flight were injured on Monday as the aircraft encountered severe turbulence just before landing, officials said.

The flight, UK 775, landed safely at the Kolkata airport at 4.25 pm, airport director C Pattabhi told PTI.

"Due to turbulence, three passengers were injured critically and five passengers had minor injuries inside the aircraft," he said.

The critically injured passengers were sent to Charnock Hospital for treatment.

The five passengers who received minor injuries were sent to their destination after being administered first aid, the airport director said.

There were 123 passengers on board the aircraft, he said.

The incident happened around 4 pm owing to bad weather when the flight was around 25 nautical miles from Kolkata, Pattabhi said.

A Vistara spokesperson said the airline is saddened by the unfortunate experience its customers had, and is closely monitoring the health status of those injured.

"We are investigating the incident on priority, and will share a further update at the earliest," the spokesperson said.

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Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.

In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.

Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.

Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.

According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.

He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.

He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.

Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.

He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.

Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.

He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.