The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed the Jharkhand government’s appeal against a High Court order that had quashed an FIR filed against BJP MPs Nishikant Dubey and Manoj Tiwari.
The case stemmed from allegations that the MPs had forced Deogarh’s Air Traffic Control (ATC) to approve the take-off of their chartered flight in August 2022.
A bench consisting of Justices Dipankar Datta and Manmohan ruled that there were no grounds to revive the case under the Indian Penal Code’s provisions on criminal trespass (Section 441) and endangering life or personal safety (Section 336). However, the Supreme Court directed the Jharkhand government to forward the relevant material to an authorized officer under the Aircraft Act within four weeks to determine whether a case could be made under this specific law.
The controversy began when Dubey, Tiwari, and several others were accused of pressuring the ATC to allow their chartered flight to take off from Deoghar. The Jharkhand government argued that the ATC area is a protected zone, and the High Court’s decision to quash the FIR had been erroneous.
The FIR was filed in early September 2023, following instructions from the Deoghar deputy commissioner. It accused the pilot of the chartered plane, as well as Dubey, his two sons, Tiwari, airport director Sandeep Dhingra, and others, of exerting undue pressure on airport officials to clear their flight for take-off on the evening of August 31, 2022.
According to the complaint, on August 31, nine individuals—including Nishikant Dubey, his sons, and Manoj Tiwari—arrived in Deoghar by chartered flight around 1:00 pm. Later that evening, during their return, some of them, including Dubey, allegedly entered the ATC room forcibly. At around 5:25 pm, the passengers, along with their relatives, arrived at the airport to board the flight.
The security in charge pointed out that Deoghar airport lacked Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) facilities, meaning night-time take-offs and landings were prohibited. On that particular day, the local sunset time was 6:03 pm, and air services ceased at 5:30 pm.
In his defense, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey denied any wrongdoing, claiming that all procedures and protocols were followed. He stated that the trip had been made to seek justice for a girl who had been set on fire by a stalker.
This legal battle continues to highlight the tension between political figures and local authorities, as the Supreme Court has now handed the case over to the Aircraft Act for further scrutiny. The outcome of this process could determine whether any aviation-related regulations were violated.
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