Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Feb 18: A day after the Maharashtra deputy chief minister Sunetra Pawar and her Nationalist Congress Party demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the air crash in which her husband Ajit Pawar was killed, the deceased’s nephew and NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar, who was the first to raise demand for an inquiry, on Wednesday reiterated his suspicion that the air crash was not an accident but an act of sabotage to kill the former deputy chief minister.
Explaining the circumstances that raise suspicion about the air crash, Mr Rohit Pawar on Wednesday alleged that the plane was loaded with two extra fuel tanks and questioned why no action has been taken against VSR Aviation company which owned and maintained the air craft which was involved in the crash just before landing at the Baramati airport on January 28.
Demanding setting up of a committee consisting of Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Pawar family members to monitor the ongoing investigation, Mr Pawar said, “The high-intensity explosion occurred during the crash due to illegal fuel tanks. The fuel tank was full, and two more tanks were kept in the plane, acting as a bomb. Why do you want to have so many fuel tanks to fly to Baramati? The refilling could have been done in Hyderabad as well,” Mr Pawar said, adding that small things were forcing the family to question whether this was an accident or a conspiracy.
Pointing out the delay in the investigation, Mr Pawar said, “The order for an investigation was issued on February 2, and the forensic people reached the spot late in the evening on January 28. How the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DCGA) investigates when there are discrepancies in the VSR’s operations. 20 days have gone by, and why is there no preliminary report out? They are protecting VSR and the brains behind it. We were checking why there is no action on the VSR company.”
Mr Pawar further raised concerns over the whereabouts of VSR Venture’s owner, V.K. Singh, and his son, Rohit Singh. He alleged that Rohit Singh, who is in Miami, left India after the accident and should have been detained for questioning.
“Powerful people are purposely protecting VSR as several Ministers of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and other parties are close to them,” he said, adding that this was why international agencies should be appointed with a monitoring committee having Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Pawar family members, MPs, and a Judge on the panel.
Following the demise of the former president of the NCP, Ajit Pawar, in a plane crash on January 28, questions surrounding the circumstances of the accident have intensified, with Rohit Pawar and other leaders expressing scepticism.
Earlier on February 10, Rohit Pawar had presented a PowerPoint briefing on the accident, outlining alleged inconsistencies in the sequence of events, concerns over DCGA’s probe, and action against the VSR company. He also raised doubts on the DCGA’s investigation, saying, “They made a blunder right from mentioning the wrong model number of the Learjet 45 aircraft.”
Mr Pawar alleged that VSR has poorly maintained their aircraft, jeopardising the lives of VVIP and other passengers travelling on them. He pointed out that the company was manipulating the documents to connect the dots and put up a tight picture of no discrepancies at the company level.
“DCGA was unaware of the flight plans of Ajit Pawar; the flight plans were changed. Now, VSR is trying to align all the paperwork. One should ask for digital evidence, where the papers were signed under the CCTV,” he said. Mr Pawar also highlighted the discrepancies in the operation of VSR, citing why the flight took off when visibility was below the norms of DCGA, and why the decision of flying back to Mumbai was not taken.
Mr Pawar also raised concerns over the registration of the plane and certification of air worthiness, the hours completed by the plane, accusing VSR of operating planes on worn-out engines. “As per the DCGA, the total hours the flight completed were 4,915 hours, and only 85 hours were left. However, we believe the machine completed 8,000 hours. Honeywell company, who has designed the engine, has been reluctant to give the data. I request DCGA to also investigate this.”
“Technically, the black box can be damaged at 1100 degrees Celsius for one hour, which is again installed under the Aluminium covering, which has a melting point of 645 degrees Celsius, so how is it possible that part of it is burned? According to norms, two hours of recording is required; only 30 minutes were done. Why the violations? Where are the accountable managers and safety officials, who are appointed after DCGA interviews them? Have DCGA interrogated them?” he further questioned.
The NCP(SP) leader also touched upon the insurance angle, saying, “The insurance value of the plane has been 55 crore, and liability insurance is 210 crore. The purchasing price was 35 crore, and the sale value has been 10-15 crores.”
He claimed that the last minute changes were made to the itinerary and that the crew was not vetted before being changed at the last minute. He also asked if fuel tanks were illegally carried on the craft and if the pilot had intended to crash the plane instead of landing it safely. A few leaders of the NCP had met the Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis last week also and had submitted a letter seeking a high-level, court-monitored probe in Pawar’s death.
Mr Pawar also claimed that there were contradictions about the timing of the crash in the ATC transcript and in the report given by the Union Aviation Ministry. He also claimed that the transponder was switched off a minute before the crash. Casting aspersions on the pilot of the aircraft, he asked why the pilot did not utter a single word even when the plane was going down, and why were the last words uttered only by the assistant pilot. He claimed that wrong information was provided about visibility before the take-off from Mumbai, and asked why the pilot repeatedly asked for permission to land on a more challenging runway on a tabletop, instead of landing on a clear runway, which was allegedly easier to land on.
He accused the investigating agencies of a lax attitude, claiming that the investigation was not being done with a sense of urgency. He expressed apprehension that the slow speed might lead to an opportunity for covering of tracks.
“Our main suspects are VSR, Arrow, Sumit Kapoor (pilot). There was misrepresentation that the visibility was clear. We trust the DGCA. We have no allegations against the government. But how can a CID probe find out details when an expert opinion is needed? Currently, the speed of the investigation is very slow. Is there no interest in the probe? Will it lead to the possibility of manipulation?” he asked.
“Why was the plane stalled? Where is the techlog of the craft? Where is the airworthy report of the craft? Who had done the routine check-up? The investigators need to speak with those who must have done all these inspections and written all the reports. Where are the CCTV footages of the hangar? No investigation has been done so far. All these things can be manipulated if this is not done properly,” he said.
He showed screen grabs of alleged private Whatsapp group conversations within the company, claiming that the pilot in question was earlier rebuked for drinking. Mr Rohit Pawar claimed that there were serious concerns about VSR, the company which owned the aircraft. “Cockpit Voice Recording was kept switched off. There was flouting of Flight Duty Time Limitation. Techlog wasn’t maintained. Stall Warning System was not functional. Was there pressure on the pilot to reach the next location in the afternoon?” he said.
Ajit Pawar, Captain Sumit Kapoor, with a flying experience of 15,000 hours, co-pilot Capt. Shambhavi Pathak, with 1,500 hours of flying, Personal Security Officer (PSO) Vidip Jadhav, and flight attendant Pinky Mali, were killed on January 28, when the Learjet aircraft crashed near the Baramati airport in Pune district.
Mr Rohit Pawar raised several questions regarding the sequence of events leading up to the crash. According to Mr Rohit Pawar, the original pilots — Sahil Madan and Yash — were reportedly delayed due to traffic. “Then how did Sumit Kapoor and Shambhavi Pathak reach the airport? Were they living nearby?” he asked, adding that Pathak had more flying experience on the Learjet than Kapoor.
He further demanded that VSR company officials be booked for culpable homicide. According to Mr Rohit Pawar, Ajit Pawar was scheduled to travel to Pune on the evening of January 27 after a Cabinet meeting, and his convoy was ready — a fact that could be verified through CCTV footage at Deogiri Bungalow, Ajit Pawar’s official residence.
“However, a leader from East Vidarbha arrived with a file related to scrapping a political consultant’s contract, which delayed the meeting. The aircraft booking was done late at night. Ajitdada was scheduled to take off at 7 am, yet the plane departed only at 8.10 a.m.,” Mr Rohit Pawar said.