Delhi High Court quashes criminal case against Air India commercial pilot who skipped breath analyser tests

The Delhi High Court recently quashed criminal proceedings against a commercial pilot who was accused of flying passengers on an Air India plane twice without undergoing a breath analyser test [Arvind Kathpalia v. State]. .The pilot was charged with a host of offences including forgery by the Delhi Police, and the case was pending before a trial court. At the same time, the disciplinary authority of Air India had filed a chargesheet against the petitioner, alleging acts of forgery and misconduct. The airline had eventually exonerated the petitioner after noting that the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had adequately punished him twice.Taking note of the closure of disciplinary proceedings against the pilot, Justice Saurabh Banerjee, said,“The continuance of the FIR under the aforesaid circumstances shall, in the opinion of this Court, result in the petitioner undergoing the ordeal twice over again for the same offence. The petitioner cannot be subjected to double jeopardy for the same offence, once after having been given a clean chit on merits in the disciplinary proceedings.” .The Court highlighted that once Air India had closed the disciplinary proceedings against the petitioner after going through the relevant records, not much remained for the FIR alleging similar offences to proceed. “This court is of the opinion that allegations against the petitioner, are wholly insufficient to make out a case against him, much less for keeping the FIR alive. Moreover, in view of the prevailing facts involved and the legal position discussed here in above, in the opinion of this Court, subsistence of the present criminal proceedings emanating from the FIR in question against the petitioner, is likely to result in subjecting him to unwarranted injustice,” it said..It added the there was “hardly any ground” leading to the conviction of the petitioner in the present case, which was based on facts that were “no more alive”..Case records showed that the petitioner flew from Delhi to Bangalore on January 19, 2017, without taking the mandatory pre-flight breath analyser test. After touching down at Bangalore, he was asked to take the test, but flew the plane back to Delhi without taking it..It was alleged that instead of reporting for the post-flight breath analyser test, he went to the Pre-flight Medical Examination Room [PFMER] and made a false entry in the register for the flight he operated from Delhi to Bangalore. He was further accused of manipulating the record in the register after operating the flight to Delhi.After a complaint was filed against the pilot, his flying licence was suspended by the DGCA..Senior Advocate Maninder Singh and Advocates Dinhar Takiar, Simran Chaudhary, Harsh Vashisht and Isha Khanna represented the pilot.Additional Public Prosecutor Mukesh Kumar appeared for the State..[Read judgment]