The Supreme Court questioned the Jharkhand government’s handling of a case against BJP MPs Dubey and Tiwari, accused of pressuring ATC for flight clearance. The court reserved judgment on an appeal challenging the High Court’s quashing of the FIR. It emphasized the need for specialized procedures under the Aircraft Act, which the MPs’ defense labeled politically motivated.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday raised critical questions about the Jharkhand government’s handling of the case against BJP MPs Nishikant Dubey and Manoj Tiwari, who were accused of allegedly pressuring air traffic control (ATC) for clearance of their chartered flight at Deoghar airport.
The apex court bench, comprising Justices A.S. Oka and Manmohan, reserved its judgment on the Jharkhand government’s appeal challenging the High Court’s March 13, 2023 decision quashing the FIR against the BJP leaders.
Justice Oka questioned the advocate for the Jharkhand government, Jayant Mohan, on whether the Jharkhand CID could investigate a case triable under the Aircraft Act. He remarked,
“How can cognisance be taken under the Aircraft Act? How can the CID probe an offence under the Aircraft Act?”
The bench highlighted that the Aircraft Act has a specialized mechanism to address such offences. It also sought clarity on whether an investigation could proceed without prior sanction, as mandated by the Aircraft (Amendment) Act, 2020.
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An FIR was registered at Kunda police station in Deoghar district in August 2023 against nine individuals, including Dubey and Tiwari. The FIR alleged that they pressured ATC personnel to grant clearance for their flight on August 31, 2022, beyond the scheduled time. This was claimed to violate airport security protocols.
The Jharkhand High Court had earlier quashed the FIR on the grounds of lack of prior sanction, a requirement under the Aircraft Act for initiating legal proceedings.
Senior advocate Maninder Singh, representing Dubey and Tiwari, countered the allegations, stating that the flight departed at 6:17 PM, well within aviation norms that permit take-offs up to 30 minutes after sunset. He asserted that the sun had set at 6:03 PM on the day in question. Singh further argued that the case was a result of political vendetta, claiming the MPs were “maliciously framed in a false case”.
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