Gujarat High Court acquits Mumbai businessman of hijacking charges after NIA court sentenced him to life

The high court held that the accused could not have been convicted for the offence of hijacking “on the premise of evidence which is tainted with doubt”.

On June 11, 2019, an Ahmedabad NIA court held Salla guilty of all the charges framed under the Anti-Hijacking Act, 2016, and awarded him “life imprisonment for the remainder of his life”.

Salla’s conviction under the Act was the first such conviction after the Act was amended and made stringent in 2016. He had allegedly planted a hoax hijack note in the flight’s bathroom and the NIA claimed that it was in the hope that it would force Jet Airways to close its Delhi operation and Salla’s girlfriend, who worked in the airline’s Delhi office, would come back to Mumbai. The note had led to an emergency landing of the flight in Ahmedabad.

The NIA court also imposed a fine of Rs 5 crore, of which Salla was directed to pay Rs 1 lakh each to the pilot and co-pilot of the Mumbai-Delhi Jet Airways 9W339 flight as compensation, a compensation of Rs 50,000 to be paid to two crew members who were functioning in the business class of the flight (where Salla was seated) and Rs 25,000 each to the 115 passengers who were aboard the flight.

The division bench of Justices A S Supehia and M R Mengedey, while overturning his conviction and allowing Salla’s appeal against his conviction by the trial court, also set aside the fine imposed by the trial court and directed that the amount of Rs 5 crore be refunded to Salla, in case it is paid.

The court also directed the flight’s crew members to refund the compensation, in case paid, pursuant to the trial court’s directions and in the alternative, the bench directed the state to “pay the amount which is paid to the crew members and it will be open for the state to recover such amount from the crew members”.

The bench also directed that the properties seized and confiscated under the Act by the investigation officer “shall be released forthwith”.

A detailed order is awaited to be made public.

Salla was charged under sections 3(1) [Whoever unlawfully and intentionally seizes or exercises control of an aircraft in service by force or threat thereof, or by coercion, or by any other form of intimidation, or by any technological means, commits the offence of hijacking], 3(2) (a) [makes a threat to commit such offence], and punishable under section 4(b) [with imprisonment for life which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person’s natural life and with fine, and the movable and immovable property of such person shall also be liable to be confiscated] of the amended Anti-Hijacking Act, 2016.