Airblue crash hearing : One case down, one more to go

PHC has shut Airblue compensation case, investigation hearing still underway.

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has shut the compensation case for Airblue crash victims after 134 among 146 families each received Rs5.5 million in financial aid.

The decision was taken after Airblue’s counsel Abdul Latif Yousafzai told the court that the PHC case was in violation of Article 186(a) of the Constitution, which says a similar issue cannot be heard at two different courts. He said families of 12 victims have filed a civil suit at the Islamabad High Court (IHC) for an enhanced compensation package.

In December 2010, the then Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid lawmaker, Marvi Memon lodged a petition at the court, seeking an independent inquiry into the aviation accident. That case, however, was closed on February 19, after nearly 27 months.

The court directed the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to reinvestigate the incident terming the first investigation incomplete, and also instructed it to check the operational capability of all carriers.

On January 19, 2011 the court ordered the federal government and Airblue to compensate the legal heirs of the crash victims.

The federal government gave the families Rs0.5 million each, while Airblue administration paid Rs5million. A total of 134 families were compensated, however 12 families were not.

On November 14, 2012, Yousafzai challenged jurisdictions of the court by saying that holding the case hearing at the PHC was unconstitutional as some petitioners have already filed a case in the IHC.



The PHC on January 17, 2013 directed Umer Adam, counsel for Memon to consult his clients as to whether the court should proceed with this petition or they (the legal heirs of crash victims) will proceed with the case at the IHC.

The bench closed proceedings into the compensation case when the 12 remaining heirs of the crash victims refused to withdraw any of the petitions.

However, the proceedings into the investigation are still underway and will resume on March 28 when the summary of the Cockpit Voice Recorder transcript on board the ill-fated plane will be produced.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 25^th, 2013.