SC to examine fairness of probe into Ahmedabad Air India crash

New Delhi, Sep 22: The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine whether adequate steps are being taken to ensure a fair and impartial investigation into the June 12 Air India crash in Ahmedabad, which claimed 260 lives, including 19 people on the ground, Bar & Bench reported.

A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and NK Singh issued notice to the Union Civil Aviation Ministry, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on a public interest litigation filed by Safety Matters Foundation, an NGO working on aviation safety. The Court, however, expressed caution about the petitioner’s plea for making all investigative records public. “Suppose tomorrow, it is said pilot ‘A’ is responsible? The family of the pilot is bound to suffer,” Justice Kant observed. The Bench clarified that responses were being sought only on the limited question of whether the probe was proceeding in a “free, fair, impartial, independent and expeditious” manner.

The NGO alleged that the AAIB’s preliminary report selectively released information that could wrongly suggest pilot error, while failing to disclose possible manufacturing defects in the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner or lapses in internationally recommended inspections. It warned that prematurely attributing blame to human error could undermine the credibility of the investigation.

“Such an approach not only misleads the public but also undermines the fundamental purpose of accident investigation, which is to uncover systemic faults and prevent recurrence,” the plea stated. The petition also flagged that three out of five members of the investigating team belong to the DGCA, creating a potential conflict of interest since the inquiry could require scrutiny of the DGCA’s own oversight functions.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO, told the Court that more than 100 days after the crash, only a preliminary report had been filed.

“It doesn’t say what has happened or what may have happened and what precautions should be taken … the result is all passengers who are travelling on these Boeing planes are at risk today,” he argued. The petitioner sought two main directions: disclosure of all records forming part of the probe, and the appointment of an independent team under the supervision of the Supreme Court. The plea was filed through advocate Pranav Sachdeva.