IHC expresses dismay over CAA for not presenting aeroplane crash report

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Monday expressed displeasure over the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for not presenting the initial inquiry report about an aeroplane crash in 2016 which had claimed 47 lives, including renowned scholar Junaid Jamshed.

Justice Aamer Farooq of the IHC heard a petition filed by the mother of an assistant pilot seeking an inquiry into the incident by a judicial commission.

During the course of proceedings, Justice Farooq remarked that two years had lapsed but no inquiry report had been presented by the department concerned. "What was the crash reason? Was it the first flight of plane or pilot?" he asked.

The CAA's counsel, Mehmood Ahmed Advocate informed the bench that the inquiry report had been completed by November 30, which was yet be signed by the authority concerned.

At this the judge remarked: "Should I wait for the report till my retirement. You are giving reference of France but there inquiry reports of such incidents are prepared in days. No one in Pakistan has any feeling over loss of precious lives."

The judge said the government should have issued orders for immediate inquiry into the incident.

The CAA's counsel requested the court to grant some time to present the initial report of the plane crash.

The petitioner's counsel Umer Adam Advocate pleaded that the domestic flight for Chitral to Islamabad was crashed on December 7, 2016 but no initial report of the incident had been presented so far. No commission was constituted by the government to know the reasons of crash, he further said.

Later the court adjourned the case till February 2, 2019.