10 HYDERABAD WEDNESDAY 08 05 2019

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Jet pilots union urges Apex

Court to rescue the airline
Petition seeks direction to SBI to provide finance to restart operations

EX P R ESS N E WS S E RV I C E @ New Delhi
THE Jet Airways pilots’ union
approached the Supreme Court
on Tuesday, asking it to inter-
vene and effectively rescue the
airline, days before the deadline
for bids expires on May 10. Na-
tional Aviators Guild (NAG)
sought direction to SBI to pro-
vide the assured interim finance
for restarting operations, sus-
pension of which has affected
the livelihood of around 22,000
employees.
Demanding that the airline
not get deregistered, the plea
also sought a direction to the
Centre and the Director General
of Civil Aviation (DGCA) not to
allot slots of Jet Airways to oth-
er airlines on a permanent ba-
sis. The distressed airline, which
had 115 aircraft, started suffer-
ing losses and has not paid its
employees since last December.
The Board of Directors of the
company had approved a plan
on March 25 which envisaged
infusion of Rs 1,500 crore over a
period of time by State Bank of
India so that the company could
be sold as a going concern, but
the promised funds were
not disbursed, the plea
said. The plea claimed
that SBI’s decision not
to infuse money was re-
sponsible for the opera-
tions of the airlines com-
ing to a stop and its
substantial devaluation.
“Despite the fact that an ex-
pression of interest has been
invited and bid process to find a
new purchaser is under way, the
Centre and DGCA have already
started allotting slots of Jet Air-
ways in various airports to oth-
e r a i rl i n e s, wh i ch h a s
seriously undermined the value
of the company,” the plea said.
The petitioner alleged that au-
thorities had failed to appreciate
the value of company, which lies
in the flight slots and seats avail-
able in the international sector
through various bilateral
agreements.
With fewer slots and
aircraft, Jet Airways
employees expressed
concern that none of
the bidders will find
the airline attractive as
an asset. Meanwhile, the
ex-chairman of Jet Airways,
Naresh Goyal, wrote yet another
emotional letter to the employ-
ees of the airline, saying he
hoped and prayed “that the
banks will finalise the bidders
on the 10th of May and move for-
ward in the interest of all
employees.”

CJI case: Complainant RAJASTHAN

Dalit woman
seeks panel’s report gang-raped,
E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ New Delhi ‘cops drag feet’
A day after Chief Justice of In- R A J E S H A S N A N I @ Jaipur
dia Ranjan Gogoi was given a
clean chit by the Supreme A Dalit woman was allegedly
Court’s in-house inquiry panel gang-raped in Rajasthan by
in a sexual harassment case; the five men after they tied up
woman complainant has de- her husband, in Thanagaji
manded that the committee give area of Alwar district. The
its report to her so that she men made a video of the inci-
knows why her complaint was dent and it has gone viral on
found to have “no substance”. social media. The role of the
The three-member committee police is under investigation
comprising Justices SA Bobde, as some social activists and
Indira Banerjee and Indu Mal- Members of women’s groups protest outside protesters allege that even
hotra had dismissed the charges the Supreme Court | NAVEEN KUMAR after registering an FIR, the
against the CJI. The SC, in a police did not take any action
statement, said the report was justice”. for four days because of elec-
given to Justice Gogoi and the She said that the Sexual Har- tions on May 6.
judge most senior after him in assment of Women at the Work- After the video went viral,
the top court, but it was not “li- place (Prevention, Prohibition protesters gathered in Than-
able to be made public” as it was and Redressal) Act 2013 in Sec- agaji on Tuesday and de-
an informal inquiry. tion 13 provided that both par- manded immediate arrest of
In a letter to Justice Bobde, ties have a right to receive a copy the culprits and action
the woman, a former junior of the report. She also said that against the guilty policemen
court assistant, has alleged lack the public had a right to this in- for the delay in probing the
of transparency in the function- formation under the RTI Act. In case.
ing of the inquiry panel and said a statement, the woman said State DGP Kapil Garg said
that not providing her a copy of that if the CJI was being given a that one of the accused, Inder
the order “would be a violation copy of the report, directly or Raj Gurjar, a truck driver,
of the principles of natural jus- indirectly, the complainant was had been arrested. The other
tice and a complete travesty of also entitled to it. accused were his friends and
they were also truck drivers,
he said. Police have deployed
SC to hear plea against ex-CM’s kin 14 teams to catch the other
four.
According to the police re-
E X P R E SS N E WS S E R V I C E @ Raipur port, the victim and her hus-
band were going from village
THE Supreme Court will hear the plea of the Chhattisgarh Police Lalwadi to Taalvraksh on a
against Dr Puneet Gupta, son-in-law of former chief minister Ra- bike at 3 pm on April 26,
man Singh, to reject the anticipatory bail granted to him by the when, on the Thanagaji-Al-
state high court. The matter will come up for hearing on May 10. war bypass road, five youths,
Gupta, who so far was reluctant to appear before the police de- aged 20-25 years, stopped
spite being served fourth notices, made a surprise appearance on their bike. The youths forci-
Monday at the Gole Bazar police station, where a complaint was bly took the couple to desert-
registered against him in March over alleged irregularities to the ed sand dunes. The husband
tune of `50 crore in the government-run Dau Kalayan Singh (DKS) was assaulted and tied up,
hospital in Raipur, where he was the superintendent during the and then the five youths
earlier BJP regime. raped the woman.