5 months ago
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The Supreme Court connected Wednesday (January 28, 2026) agreed to springiness a abbreviated day of proceeding successful petitions seeking an independent, judicially-monitored probe into the reasons down the Air India Flight 171 crash astatine the Ahmedabad Airport, killing 12 unit members and 229 passengers connected June 12, past year.
The lawsuit was listed earlier a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya connected January 28. The batch of petitions, includes 1 filed by 91-year-old Pushkar Raj Sabharwal, the begetter of Commander Sumeet Sabharwal, 1 of the pilots connected the ill-fated aircraft, the Federation of Indian Pilots, and an NGO, Safety Matters Foundation.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO, made an oral mentioning that the Bench whitethorn not beryllium capable to perceive the lawsuit connected Thursday (January 29, 2026) arsenic petitions challenging the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) workout were scheduled aboriginal successful the day.
Mr. Bhushan submitted that determination has been nary responses from the Union authorities oregon the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) connected the petitions filed successful the Supreme Court.
“The pilots are saying the 787s are wholly unsafe. That determination is an physics problem. A Court of Inquiry has to beryllium appointed,” Mr. Bhushan submitted.
The petitioners person argued antecedently that they had not moved the apex tribunal to “apportion blame” but to unearth “what” caused the mishap and to safeguard the aboriginal against specified tragedies. The tribunal had besides made it wide that the intent of an AAIB enquiry nether Section 4C of the Aircraft Act 1934 and the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2017 was not to delegate blame.
Mr. Sabharwal had approached the court, shocked by the “nasty” reportage astir his lad and rumours of aviator error. He had argued that the AAIB probe was flawed.
His petition had followed a preliminary report, published successful the media, containing what was believed to beryllium a little verbal speech betwixt the 2 pilots, caught connected the flight’s achromatic box. In this, 1 of them had reportedly asked astir the substance power being chopped off, portion the different had replied helium had not switched it off. The crushed for the clang was said to beryllium the abrupt stoppage of the substance proviso to some the engines.
The Union government, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, had submitted that the probe was successful compliance with planetary conventions and mandatory steps required by the International Civil Aviation Organisation to beryllium taken successful cases of aerial accidents. He said determination was a statutory authorities nether Section 4C successful place. The authorities cannot crook its backmost connected the law. Besides, helium said, overseas nationals were killed successful the accident, which made it each the pertinent that India followed planetary standards.
