A single bench of Bombay High Court ruled that AI Charters, the owner of Air India Express, would be liable for compensation amounting to Rs 3.32 crore, computed as per the pilot's salary at the time of the crash. The court found the previous compensation order of Rs 4.63 crore to be flawed and in need of revision
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The Bombay High Court (HC) has overturned a labour court order that directed Air India (AI) Charters Ltd to pay Rs 4.63 crore in compensation to the family of a pilot of Air India Express, who died when the flight crashed at Mangaluru airport in 2010, news agency PTI reported.
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The judgment was delivered on Wednesday, October 23, but was made public the following day. A single bench of Justice Sharmila Deshmukh ruled that AI Charters would be liable for compensation amounting to Rs 3.32 crore, computed as per the pilot's salary at the time of the crash. The court found the previous compensation order of Rs 4.63 crore to be flawed and in need of revision.
Fourteen years ago, on 22 May, a Boeing 737 operated by Air India Express crashed upon landing at Mangaluru airport, resulting in the deaths of all 158 people on board, including the pilot, Zlatko Glusica, a Serbian national. Glusica, who was 55 at the time of the incident, had been earning a claimed monthly salary of USD 11,000, for which his family sought compensation of USD 745,580. However, the company stated that the pilot's actual salary was USD 9,170, reported PTI.
In September 2012, AI Charters deposited an interim amount of Rs 3.32 crore with the Labour Commissioner’s office in Mumbai. In October 2013, the Commissioner for Employees Compensation ordered AI Charters to pay USD 745,580 (Rs 4,63,37,797), along with a 50 per cent penalty and 12 per cent annual interest from the date of the accident.
According to PTI, AI Charters appealed against the order in HC, arguing that the pilot was employed through a private firm, Sigmar Aviation Ltd, and that his salary was lower than what the Commissioner had used to determine the payout.
The court found the Commissioner's order to be flawed and stated that the compensation already deposited by AI Charters, calculated at the pilot's actual salary of USD 9,170, was sufficient to cover the amount owed. Consequently, no further payment was required.
HC held that the Commissioner's order suffered from "perversity and warrants interference".
Additionally, the court waived the 50 per cent penalty imposed on the company.
(With PTI inputs)
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