KOCHI: The shocking and painful verdict by the High Court Division Bench is a double blow to the relatives of the victims who had lost their beloved ones, said N A Sulaiman, coordinator of the Mangalore Aircrash Victims Family Association.He said the association would move the Supreme Court against the High Court judgment . ‘’We expected a humane approach from the Air India authorities,’’ Sulaiman said.He alleged that Union Minister for Civil Aviation Vayalar Ravi did not keep his word. He further alleged that Air India was dancing to the tunes of the insurance company involved.Responding to the Single Judge order, the Minister announced that Air India would not challenge the order and the compensation would be distributed as directed by the court.Sulaiman feels that denial of compensation as per international condition is an injustice to the relatives of victims. ‘’The accident was not because of the passengers’ error. Most of them belong to poor families,’’ he said.Kochi-based aviation expert Jacob Thomas is of the opinion that the Air India should not have challenged the order directing to provide compensation, ‘’Air India is a company which always depends on the government for financial aid. The company authorities should have kept in mind the fact that the aid they receive from the government include the tax paid by the victims in the crash also. Air India received a grant of `2,000 crore even recently,’’ he said. The judgment is is unfortunate and is painful, said Abdul Salam, who filed a petition seeking compensation for victims in the crash. Abdul Salam’s son Mohammed Rafi was killed in the crash. It was on the basis of this petition that single judge Justice P R Ramachandran Menon directed the Air India to pay a compensation of `1 lakh Special Drawing Rights(equal to `75 lakh). The Air India approached the Division Bench against this order.
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