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Parliamentary panel supports death penalty for hijackers

But it has also raised questions as to whether opportunities for any negotiation or settlement to save lives would be foreclosed if the hijackers knew they would get capital punishment for the offence.

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Supporting death penalty for hijackers, a parliamentary committee has said it must be applicable to those offenders whose actions result in death of hostages or security personnel.

But it has also raised questions as to whether opportunities for any negotiation or settlement to save lives would be foreclosed if the hijackers knew they would get capital punishment for the offence.

The Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture, headed by CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury, today presented its report on the Anti-Hijacking (Amendment) Bill 2010, to Rajya Sabha chairman Hamid Ansari and Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar.

The committee felt the proposed amendment to include death penalty in 1982 Anti-Hijacking Act was "the need of the hour and unavoidable in the heightened threat of such a daring crime."

It endorsed the proposed amendment that provides for capital punishment to the hijackers as well as "to the conspirators and abettors also who commit any of the acts" referred to in the prevailing law.

It, however, noted that it was not clear in the proposed amendment whether death penalty would be applicable to the hijackers who kill hostages or security men or to all hijackers who have caused or not caused any fatalities.

"The Committee is of the opinion that if death penalty was a foregone conclusion for the offence of hijacking, the opportunities for any negotiation or settlement to save lives of passengers may be foreclosed," the report said.

"What about the safety of passengers and crew when the hijackers are sure that they will get death penalty for their offence? Whether the death penalty would really be deterrence to those hijackers who do it as suicide mission," it said.

Expressing reservations over the definition of hijack or seizure of an aircraft "in flight", the Committee observed that it does not include cases of "forced entry into aircraft and its take-over when the aircraft is on the taxiway at the airport with or without passengers or when pre-flight checking of the aircraft is in progress."

It recommended that "the definition of hijacking needs to be widened to include such situations also."

Observing that grant of compensation was time-consuming involving lot of litigation and procedures, it recommended that with a stand-alone law on hijacking, it would be appropriate to include "all aspects related or incidental to the act of hijacking in this legislation itself".

It asked civil aviation ministry to consider including necessary provisions for compensation in the Act.

Noting that there have been increased instances of hijacking of buses, trains and cars in the recent past, the panel asked the government to consider having a law to deal with such cases and provide punishment to offenders.

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