Supreme Court Verdict Upholds Aircraft Act's Authority on Aviation Safety

The Supreme Court ruled that the Aircraft Act is the complete authority on civil aviation safety, limiting state police to forwarding investigative materials to aviation authorities. This decision followed Jharkhand government's appeal against quashing an FIR involving BJP MPs. The court found insufficient evidence for criminal charges against the MPs.

The Supreme Court has decisively ruled that the Aircraft Act stands as a comprehensive legal structure governing civil aviation safety and security, effectively sidelining the role of state police to mere facilitators who can only pass on probe materials to the aviation authorities.

This landmark verdict emerged from a bench comprising Justices A S Oka and Manmohan, as the court responded to an appeal by the Jharkhand government against a High Court judgment that quashed an FIR against BJP MPs Nishikant Dubey and Manoj Tiwari.

The case revolved around allegations that the MPs influenced Deoghar's air traffic control to permit a post-sunset departure in 2022. However, the Supreme Court found no substantive evidence that the MPs endangered lives or trespassed, thereby dismissing charges and affirming the primacy of aviation-specific proceedings.

(With inputs from agencies.)