Twitter
Advertisement

Hijacked plane on terror path will be shot down, says govt

Cabinet approves proposal to destroy aircraft being used to hit crucial targets; hijackers, conspirators likely to get death sentence

Latest News
article-main
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

Security agencies will soon get special powers to shoot down hijacked aircraft that could be used as missiles to strike at sensitive targets.

Alert to the possibility of 9/11 World Trade Centre-type attacks in India and a repeat of the Indian Airlines flight hijacking of 1999, the Union cabinet on Friday approved toughening of the Anti-Hijacking Act, 1982, through several amendments. These were proposed by a group of ministers (GoM) headed by home minister P Chidambaram.

The amendments give special powers to the security agencies to shoot down a hijacked plane in case there is conclusive evidence that it will be used as a missile, as in 9/11, to hit crucial and strategic installations in the country, or it is carrying weapons of mass destruction.

The bureau of civil aviation security has classified hijacked aircraft into three groups —doubtful, rogue and threat. Only planes that fall in the category of threat aircraft will be shot down. The decision on shooting down the plane will be taken by the prime minister, defence minister, home minister and an Indian air force officer not below the rank of assistant chief of air staff (operations).

The security agencies will also be given powers to immobilise a plane and prevent it from taking off if it is hijacked on Indian soil.   

The Indian air force will have the authority to take necessary steps for scrambling fighter jets to guard and guide the hijacked aircraft and force it to land on an Indian airport.

The proposed amendments treat hijacking as an act of terror. They prescribe death sentence as one of the punishment options for hijackers and the conspirators in hijacking. This means hijacking will now be viewed as a crime equivalent to waging war against the nation, terrorism and conspiring/attempting to overthrow the government. All of these prescribe death penalty since these are seen as the worst crime a person can commit against the state.

Earlier, the penalty for hijacking or being part of this heinous act was limited to imprisonment for life along with a fine. India’s anti-hijack policy rules out negotiations with hijackers on their demands.

The government believed that there was a need for an overall re-look at the existing law in view of the Kandahar hijack of 1999 and 9/11 (2001) incident in New York. There was also a feeling that life imprisonment was too less a punishment given the magnitude of the offence and it needed to be made more stringent to act as a deterrent.

The group of ministers examined the national anti-hijacking policy based on the recommendations of the bureau of civil aviation security. “The previous draft bill was clumsily drafted. This has been set right,” said Chidambaram.

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement