Student pilot from India among two killed in mid-air crash in Canada
Ottawa (PTI): An Indian student pilot was killed in a mid-air crash in Manitoba province of Canada, according to the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
The Indian pilot, identified as Sreehari Sukesh, was killed when his single-engine plane collided mid-air with another similar aircraft piloted by a Canadian youth, who was also killed in the accident on Tuesday.
The Consulate General of India on Wednesday said it was “in contact with the bereaved family, the pilot training school and local police to provide all necessary assistance.”
“The bodies of the two student pilots were recovered in the wreckage of their single-engine planes after both crashed mid-air on Tuesday morning near Steinbach, roughly 50 kilometres southeast of Winnipeg,” a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) news report said.
The students collided when approaching a landing strip while practising takeoffs and landings, the CBC report said, quoting Adam Penner, president of Harv's Air, the flying school where both pilots had been training.
The Transportation Safety Board, the agency responsible for investigating aviation incidents in Canada, said it is gathering information and assessing the fatal crash.
Sreehari Sukesh's age was not mentioned.
The CBC said the Canadian victim was 20-year-old Savanna May Royes, who, it said, “had always dreamed of becoming a pilot, following in the footsteps of her father.”
A Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) statement said after its Steinbach unit was notified of the mid-air collision, the personnel from the RCMP, fire department and Emergency medical services attended and located the wreckage of two small, single-engine aircraft, south of Steinbach.
“The two pilots were pronounced deceased on scene. There were no passengers aboard,” it said.
Nathaniel Plett, who lives near the flight school, told CBC News that he and his wife heard a loud bang on Tuesday morning. “I said to my wife, 'That's a plane crash',” Plett said. “There was a pillar of black smoke coming up, and a little later [we] heard another bang, and there was an even bigger pop of black smoke.”
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Go to EC or courts: BJP state chief on allegations regarding Suresh Gopi's 2024 LS win
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Wednesday said any illegality in connection with the election of a candidate during polls should be raised before the Election Commission or the courts, "instead of spreading lies to fool and provoke the public".
Chandrasekhar's remarks came in the wake of Congress and CPI allegations that Union Minister of State Suresh Gopi filed a false declaration during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and that his victory from Thrissur constituency was due to voter list manipulation.
The Congress, a day ago, alleged that the Union Minister of State for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Tourism submitted a false declaration to be included in the voters' list for the Thrissur Lok Sabha constituency.
The grand old party has lodged a complaint with the police demanding registration of a criminal case against him.
Prior to that, CPI leader V S Sunil Kumar, on Monday, alleged that there was clear manipulation in the electoral roll, which facilitated Gopi's victory in the Thrissur constituency.
Gopi had won the Thrissur seat by a significant margin of over 74,000 votes, defeating Kumar and Congress candidate K Muraleedharan in a closely fought three-cornered contest.
On Wednesday, Chandrasekhar questioned the veracity of the allegations by saying that these claims were being raised one-and-a-half year after Gopi won in the LS polls.
The BJP leader also said that such issues should be raised before the Election Commission or the courts by filing a complaint or election petition.
"They do not do that. Instead, they try to provoke the public by telling lies or try to divert people's attention by their propaganda. It is all a show," he claimed.
He alleged that such dramas are being done by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan as elections approach.
Meanwhile, Gopi reached Thrissur and met a BJP worker who was injured in a protest on Tuesday.
After arriving at Thrissur railway station, the minister did not respond to reporters' queries about the Congress and CPI allegations.
At the hospital, he only said, "Thanks for helping so much". It was not clear to whom he was referring to.
On Tuesday, General Education Minister V Sivankutty urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to carry out a re-election in the Thrissur Lok Sabha constituency, in the wake of reports of widespread voters' list manipulation.
