A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Thursday set aside a single bench order granting a minimum of one lakh Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), equivalent to about 75 lakh rupees to the families of the victims killed in the Air India Express crash at Mangalore last year.The Division Bench comprising Justice C N Ramachandran Nair and Justice P S Gopinathan allowed a writ appeal filed by Air India challenging the single bench order and directed that the matter be settled through negotiations with the attorneys of the national air carrier.The Bench also ordered Air India to pay a compensation reasonably estimated by the attorneys and offer a reasonable minimum to the claimants.The Division Bench dismissed a petition filed by the family members of Mohammed Rafi, who was killed in the crash, seeking higher compensation.The mishap took place on May 22 last year, when the Air India Express flight from Dubai overshot the runway and crashed into a gorge, while attempting to land at the Mangalore airport killing 158 passengers on board.
News On AIR | August 25, 2011 6:46 PM
Kerala HC sets aside Mangalore crash compensation order