Families of Mangalore plane crash victims accuse AI of discrimination

Families of Mangalore plane crash victims accuse AI of discrimination

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, Aug 27: The families of the victims of the Mangalore plane crash of May 22 have alleged that victims who used to earn higher salaries received more compensation than victims who got lower salaries.

The Montreal Convention states that a victim might get a maximum compensation of $160,000 or Rs. 76 lakh; however, the legal advisors of the families of the deceased have alleged that the rules of the Montreal Convention have been violated and at least two families received Rs. 90 lakh according to their incomes of Rs. 80,000 – Rs. 1.2 lakh per month.

Other families have also alleged that Air India (AI) has discriminated between woman and child victims and the men who were killed. Abdul Basheer, the brother of Abdul Rehman who lost his wife and son in the crash, said that he has attended a meeting in Mumbai, during which he observed that women victims were offered Rs. 30 lakh and children were offered Rs. 25 lakh while poor people who earned lower salaries were paid Rs. 45 lakh or lesser.

He also said that baggage claims received uniform rates of Rs. 70,000 each, even in cases where passengers lost baggage worth more than Rs. 70,000.

Harpreeth Singh, the general manager (quality management system) of Air India, said that the airline has been following the guidelines of the Montreal Convention. She added that she was surprised at the variation in spite of the fact that the legal team is working according to the rules.

The members of the victims’ association say that they will study the terms of the compensation offer carefully and then take a decision whether to accept it or seek legal assistance.

Insurance officials have disclosed that airline passengers have 2 types of accident policies. The first is a personal accident cover and the second is a liability accident cover. According to the terms of the airline liability insurance policy, the passenger will receive full compensation according to the Montreal Convention. The personal accident policy, on the other hand, covers the total sum assured and is not related to the passenger’s income.