During interrogation by Ahmedabad Crime Branch, one of the passengers on the flight, Birju Kishor Salla, a Gujarat native from Thane, Mumbai
A Delhi-bound Jet Airways flight from Mumbai was diverted to Ahmedabad in the early hours of Monday after its pilot was passed on a note which said there were hijackers on board. It didn't take the police long to identify the person who unleashed several anxious hours — both for authorities and for passengers.
During interrogation by Ahmedabad Crime Branch, one of the passengers on the flight, Birju Kishor Salla, a Gujarat native from Thane, Mumbai, revealed he wanted his girlfriend, who worked with the PR section of the airlines to quit her job. So he plotted to destroy the name of the airlines so that it eventually shuts. Salla thus left a note in one of the lavatories.
Soon after the flight, 9W 339, took off from Mumbai at 2.55am, a crew member found the letter in the tissue box inside the lavatory, stating that the plane had hijackers on board and it should not land in Delhi.
The crew informed the pilot about the same and he contacted the air traffic control. The plane was then diverted and landed at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International airport here around 3.45 am.
The Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad, the deputy commissioner of police and his team, Ahmedabad crime branch officials and other specialised teams reached the spot immediately.
Manoj Gangal, Airport Director, SVPI said, "At 3.34 am, the pilot of the Mumbai-Delhi Jet Airways flight informed ATC, Ahmedabad, that there were hijackers and explosives on board. When the pilot expressed his desire to land in Ahmedabad, the ATC allowed priority landing of the aircraft. There were a total of 115 passengers and seven crew members on board."
"The aerodrome committee soon assembled at the airport and after conducting thorough security checks of passengers, aircraft and cargo, the flight was cleared for Delhi. The Ahmedabad city police have taken cognisance of the incident and have initiated an investigation," Gangal noted.
According to police sources, the noted was in both Urdu and English. "Salla used Google converter to write in Urdu," they said.
ACP of Special Operations Group of Crime, BC Solanki, who is investigating the case, said the note was printed on an A4-sized paper.
"The CCTV camera showed five passengers, including Salla, using the lavatory from where the note was found. Salla was our main suspect because he was involved in a similar incident a few years ago, when he had claimed to have a cockroach in the food served on board," Solanki said.
Interestingly, Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju took to Twitter and asked all airlines to ban the hoax caller who disrupted the flight. "I am informed that person responsible for Jet flight 339 (Mum-Del) incident causing the landing at Ahmedabad today morning has been identified... I am advising the airlines to put him on the No-Fly list immediately, in addition to other statutory criminal action," Raju tweeted.
Last year, in a similar incident, 125 passengers and six crew members of a Mumbai-bound Jet Airways flight were panic-stricken when a torn boarding pass with the word 'BOMB' written on it was found in a seat pocket. Those on board were immediately evacuated and the flight moved to an isolated location at the Ahmedabad airport.
After checking the passenger manifest, it was found that the torn end of the e-boarding pass belonged to a passenger who was in the city to attend a meeting. While he accepted that the piece was torn by him, he denied it was his handwriting.
When the search operation at Ahmedabad airport was on, Jet Airways issued a statement saying: Jet Airways flight 9W 339 Mumbai-Delhi diverted to Ahmedabad following declaration of an emergency as per established security procedures, due to the detection of an onboard security threat. The aircraft landed without incident at Ahmedabad and was parked at a remote bay, where all 115 guests and seven crew members were safely deplaned.
Jet airways is extending full cooperation to the security agencies who are investigating the matter and is not in a position to comment further at this stage. The airline regrets the inconvenience caused to its guests and is making efforts to bring them to Delhi at the earliest.
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