DGCA team scans Baramati airport

Rohit Pawar bays for probe, suspension of VRSVPL Mumbai: In a major development, a team of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) reached Pune and carried out a detailed inspection of the Baramati airport where the Learjet crash killed Nationalist Congress Party President and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Anantrao Pawar on Jan. 28. The visit came barely 12 hours after Nationalist Congress Party (SP) MLA Rohit R. Pawar made sensational disclosures connected to the air-crash, the...

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Rohit Pawar bays for probe, suspension of VRSVPL Mumbai: In a major development, a team of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) reached Pune and carried out a detailed inspection of the Baramati airport where the Learjet crash killed Nationalist Congress Party President and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Anantrao Pawar on Jan. 28. The visit came barely 12 hours after Nationalist Congress Party (SP) MLA Rohit R. Pawar made sensational disclosures connected to the air-crash, the purported safety violations perpetrated by the aircraft owner, VSR Ventures Pvt. Ltd. (VSRVPL), its top brass, records of the plane plus the individuals and other alleged irregularities. Simultaneously, Rohit Pawar visited New Delhi to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah and others on the same issue and to aggressively put up the demand for a proper and full-fledged investigation into the tragedy. “If I am asked if there is anything shady, I will say that it was not merely an accident. It’s a 100 percent conspiracy. I state this with full responsibility and there is nothing political about it. There was something definitely wrong due to which my uncle lost his life,” reiterated Rohit Pawar forcefully in New Delhi today. Seeking a time-bound investigation by European probe agencies in tandem with the DGCA and the CID, he called for a multi-party team of political leaders to oversee and monitor the probe. “Let it be clear. We are very disturbed. There are many questions to which we need answers fast – within a month,” he urged. Rohit Pawar repeated his explosive allegations that the highly connected VSRVPL top brass could manipulate evidence or suppress crucial documents if the probe gets delayed. Citing the experience of the September 2023 Learjet crash at Mumbai Airport, he said the probe report into that aircraft owned by VSRVPL is still languishing and just last week – after the Baramati crash - the Indian authorities committed that it would be completed soon. “The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) had sought details of the Sep. 2023 crash from VSRVPL, but the request was spurned. Some media persons informed me that the probe report was ready and was to be sent a couple of weeks ago, but it was apparently scuttled by a senior politician with experience in the aviation department. All this needs to be cross-checked. If that report had been released, it would have brought out many things and remedial measures could have been taken and Ajit Pawar could have been saved,” said Rohit Pawar. The Karjat-Jamkhed law-maker said the company had a troubling history of safety - including issues related to pilots and aircraft maintenance - leading to its suspension by EASA. “Strangely, its operations are still allowed in India. Why was it not suspended here? Political VIPs, business leaders, cricketers and celebrities use its aircraft. They are clearly playing with the lives of top people,” he charged. Rohit Pawar accused VSRVPL of cost-cutting practices and claimed some of its pilots had been found inebriated in the past, and sought scrutiny of internal WhatsApp group chats, including those involving Arrow Aviation Services (AAS) - the handler managing VIP bookings – whose official allegedly provided incorrect weather information. “AAS had told them visibility was normal at Baramati Airport that morning, when it was actually 3,000-metres. This flouts the stringent DGCA norms of no flight operations if visibility is not a minimum 5000-metres,” pointed out Rohit Pawar. He revealed that on Jan. 27 at 7:13 pm, a request was made through Arrow to book the aircraft as Ajit Pawar’s meetings were getting unduly delayed, as he had to urgently sign a file of a senior NCP leader from Vidarbha who was late, and this forced the DyCM to cancel his road travel plans. Rohit Pawar raised serious questions about maintenance lapses as the VSRVPL reportedly has its own in-house MRO. “Who was handling it? Were there qualified aircraft maintenance engineers? What about its hangar details? All this must be fully probed,” he persisted. On the last-minute changes, he asked why the designated pilot Sahil Madan was replaced by Sumit Kapoor, why the flight scheduled to take off at 7 am, departed at 8:10 am, but no convincing reasons have been given so far. He alleged that Kapoor had previously been suspended for three years over alcohol-addiction related issues and was often found consuming liquor during duty hours, as also some others in the company. Cautioning the DGCA against evading responsibility, Rohit Pawar said: “We will not tolerate if the DGCA attempts to run away from a proper probe by making stray statements. It is a good agency, and we expect a thorough technical investigation.” Pawar’s silence Referring to NCP(SP) Supremo Sharad Pawar’s ‘silence’ on possibility of sabotage immediately after the tragedy, Rohit Pawar surmised that it was deliberate, even as other senior leaders across the political spectrum jumped to his support. “However, I am speaking with research-based information. We will not sleep peacefully till all the mysteries are solved, lingering doubts cleared or nagging questions convincingly answered... Ajit Pawar is no more, we only seek the truth,” he added. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said that if a Vidarbha leader’s visit had delayed Ajit Pawar’s Baramati road trip, it must be probed. “Who was that leader? What was so important in that file? Would Maharashtra have stopped if it was not signed?” SS (UBT) Deputy Leader Sushma Andhare said all the points raised by Rohit Pawar are valid and the authorities must take serious note of the issues he wants resolved. Congress Chief Spokesperson Atul Londhe said: “I have learnt that the Black Box on all VSRVPL aircraft are kept switched off. Was it the same even in this case? If nothing is found in the Black Box of this plane, then no surprises." NCP Amalner MLA Anil Bhaidas Patil urged the media and political parties “not to give any political twist” to Rohit Pawar’s demand for a probe as it could unnecessarily mislead the people of Maharashtra.

India bears the brunt: Nifty crashes 1,100, Sensex nosedives 3,900 points after US trade shock

Correspondent
Apr 7, 2025
2 min read

India woke up to a financial jolt this morning as its equity markets suffered their steepest fall in nearly a year, shaken by the ripple effects of US President Donald Trump’s aggressive new tariff regime. The Sensex plunged over 3,900 points at opening bell, while the Nifty tumbled more than 1,100 points, dragging Indian stocks to a 10-month low.

This sharp decline follows a global equity rout triggered by Trump's protectionist measures, which have sent panic waves across Asia and raised the spectre of a global recession. Investors dumped shares in a massive sell-off, with Indian benchmarks reacting sharply in early trade. The Sensex dropped to 71,425.01 — down 3,939.68 points — while Nifty slipped to 21,743.65, marking a 3.5% slide from the last session.

Adding to the pressure, the Indian rupee depreciated 30 paise to open at 85.74 against the US dollar.

India Among the Hardest Hit

Trump’s latest tariff hike — framed as a push to restore fairness to global trade — has imposed country-specific duties that go as high as 50%. India has been slapped with a 26% tariff, while a 10% baseline duty applies to all nations. This has set alarm bells ringing among Indian exporters and traders already struggling with global demand volatility.

President Trump, unfazed by the financial carnage, likened the move to a bitter but necessary cure. “Sometimes you need the medicine to fix something,” he told reporters earlier today.

Analysts Urge Economic Safeguards

Market experts believe that India's current market turmoil isn't rooted in domestic issues but is rather a consequence of being tightly woven into global investment flows.

“India will face the heat, not due to domestic reasons, but as an interlinked chain in the global portfolio flows,” said Ajay Bagga, a noted market expert. “India will need a fiscal, monetary, and reform package to protect the domestic economy from this global economic winter that is threatening to settle in.”

Sunil Gurjar, SEBI-registered research analyst, warned that the Nifty50 index has breached its first support level and is approaching the next. "A further breakdown could worsen the trend and accelerate the fall," he cautioned.

Asian Markets Bleed

The tremors from Trump's announcement were first felt in Asia, with key markets suffering steep losses. China's stock markets fell over 4% amid retaliatory tariffs of 34% against the US. Hong Kong's Hang Seng nosedived more than 10%, while Japan’s Nikkei index fell 6.5% after plunging 8% earlier in the day. Taiwan saw a near-10% collapse, and Singapore dropped over 8%.

Wall Street Braces for Impact

US markets, though yet to open, appear set for a rough start. Futures contracts on the New York Stock Exchange are sharply down, suggesting heavy losses once trading resumes.

Market sentiment globally has turned bearish, with fears of a looming recession taking hold. Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management described the scene as “free-fall mode,” noting, “Trump’s team isn’t blinking. The tariffs are being treated as a victory lap, not a bargaining chip.”