The son of former Maharashtra minister Tanaji Sawant, Rushiraj Sawant, was traveling to Bangkok on a chartered flight when it was abruptly rerouted to Pune in midair.
An anonymous report concerning Sawant’s kidnapping led police to turn around the flight, which had already passed Port Blair.
Sawant and his two friends were unaware of the situation and were astonished when the crew, acting on orders from the police and aviation authorities, landed in Pune rather than Bangkok.
the pilots of a plane that was transporting the son of former Maharashtra minister Tanaji Sawant to Bangkok believed the directive to return to Pune was a “hoax.” However, an airline executive was quoted by PTI as adding that they followed the instructions after consulting with aviation authorities.
The airline official stated that only after careful investigation was the decision to reroute the flight to Pune made.
Rushiraj Sawant and his two companions characterized their journey to Bangkok as a “business trip.”
After his father, Tanaji Sawant, intervened and the police filed a kidnapping case in response to an anonymous call, they were promptly taken back to Pune.
“When we received the initial phone call (from family members) asking us to cancel the vacation, we didn’t believe it to be true. These calls can be scams, therefore we can’t trust them,” the executive of the airline operator said.
“the decision to turn around the flight was taken and it returned to Pune after due verification from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and knowing it pertained to a kidnapping case being probed by police.”
the executive, this was most likely the first time a passenger had lodged a criminal complaint, leading to a flight being recalled mid-flight.
the official, “such things only happen in case of some sort of emergency, such as medical or technical emergency.”
above the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, above Port Blair (Sri Vijaya Puram), the airplane was redirected. According to the CEO, the three passengers on board were not told of the change in location to avoid any commotion or objections.
passengers were unaware that their plane was returning to Pune without their knowledge because the panel in front of them that displayed maps and navigation had already been turned off. After eating, they were unwinding,” he remarked.
The passenger (Rushiraj) and the other two were taken aback upon landing at Pune International Airport and questioned the pilots in a furious manner. They were merely following orders, the pilot-in-command informed them,” he added.
CISF officers led the passengers off the aircraft once it touched down in Pune. The flight operator provided the required information and described the regular operating procedures in response to the DGCA’s demands.
At 4 p.m. on Monday, Pune police received an anonymous call reporting the kidnapping of Rushiraj Sawant, which sparked the incident. Tanaji Sawant father, then sought assistance from the police commissioner after a kidnapping complaint was promptly filed.
Rushiraj and his two friends secretly booked the plane to Bangkok without informing his family. He later told the authorities that he kept the trip a secret to avoid upsetting his family.
Opposition Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders accused Tanaji Sawant of abusing the police system to get his son back, and they chastised the police for reacting swiftly to the anonymous call.