The government on Thursday introduced a bill in the Rajya Sabha to award death penalty to those involved in the hijacking of civilian planes.
The Anti-Hijacking (Amendment) Bill 2010, introduced in the Rajya Sabha by Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, seeks to have a provision to deal with hijacking, making the law more comprehensive and stringent.
Referring to the hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight to Kandahar in 1999 and the 9/11 attack, the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the bill says such incidents have necessitated a fresh and thorough examination of the preparedness of all concerned to face such exigencies.
“The present law has insufficient penalties to deal with these new situations and is not deterrent enough to prospective offenders. It is necessary to make the extant provisions dealing with hijacking more comprehensive to cover all aspects and kinds of hijacking by offenders and to make the law more stringent by award of death penalty for such offences,” it said.
In view of the increasing cases of hijacking and impending threats of hijacking, the bill proposes to amend the Anti-Hijacking Act, 1982 which at present provides for life imprisonment and fine for such offenders.
