LUCKNOW(PTD): A three and half hour long hijack drama at Lucknow’s Amausi airport on Jan.22 ended peacefully when the lone hijacker, claiming to be a BJP activist possessing two chemical bombs, overpowered by the police.
All the 48 passengers, including Federal Welfare Minister, Sitaram Kesn, Minister of State, Krishna Sahi, Ranji Ranjannsahu, M.P. and Tariq Anwar, former M.P., were rescued safe.
The hijacker Satish Chandra Pandey of Sultanpur distnct of northern Uttar Pradesh state was overpowered by the senior superintendent of Police (Lucknow), Shailja Kant Misra and D.S.Chauhan, SP. (City) in plain clothes around 2135 hrs. Friday night.
The hijacker had threatened to blow up the plane IC 810 (Avro) with two chemical bombs around 1825 hrs. 45 minutes after the plane took off from here. The pilot of the plane had sought permission for emergency landing at the Amausi after the threat.
Pandey had demanded that the Karsewaks (volunteers) arrested in connection with the demolition of the disputed structure at Ayodhya be released, the ban on Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the RSS and the Bajrang Dal lifted, cases against the Karsewaks withdrawn and temple, constructed at ayodhya Captain Sindhi was commandeering the flight with five crew. Rajni Ranjan Sahu, who also was on board the aircraft, told PTI that Pandey in his early thirties got off from his seat barely 20 minutes after the plane was airborne and warned the passengers not to move or do anything to force him to blow the plane off. Sahu said at one stage the hijacker had requested the passenger to identify Vajpayee, who had entered the plane around 2100 hrs. to negotiate as demanded by Pandey. Pandey did not recognize him (Vajpayee).
The hijacker, immediately after the surrender was taken to an undisclosed destination for interrogation. Sahu said the youth had a brief discussion with Vajpayee before surrendering to the authorities. He said no explosive material was seized from the youth who carried a ball like thing wrapped in jute thread.
Meanwhile the airlines sources said here arrangements were being made to fly the sanded passengers on Saturday morning.
The hijacker bid is the second in nearly two decades after the mid70 bid by two youths to hijack a plane of the domestic air carrier demanding the release of Indira Gandhi.
Earlier officials had indicated that there were no prominent personality in the hijacked plane.
Article extracted from this publication >> January 29, 1993
