Vijay Rupani's daughter urges Air India to drop compensation waiver requirement

New Delhi | Ahmedabad: Air India has been offering cash settlements to families of victims of last year's Ahmedabad plane crash only if they waive their rights to file legal cases against the airline and its manufacturer, said Radhika Mishra, daughter of former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, who was among the 242 passengers killed.

In an email to Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran, who also chairs Air India, Radhika urged the airline to stop such efforts before the investigation is complete.

"The investigation is not yet complete, yet the document requires families to permanently waive present and future claims before all facts are known. We deserve more than compensation. We deserve answers. We deserve transparency and above all closure," Mishra wrote in the email that ET reviewed.


She asked that Air India ensure no family feels pressured to choose between immediate financial support and the pursuit of truth.

Two other relatives of victims said they were also asked to sign a similar document as a condition for receiving compensation. ET reviewed a copy of the undertaking, which states that by agreeing to its conditions, families will "irrevocably and forever release" abdicate their right to sue or make claims against Air India and other stakeholders - including aircraft manufacturer Boeing, engine maker General Electric, Honeywell, Ahmedabad Airport, and the Union of India.

The agreement remains binding even if future investigations uncover new findings or establish the cause of the crash and is enforceable regardless of country or jurisdiction.

Air India said families are under no deadline to accept its final compensation offer and are free to wait for the AAIB report. It said the settlement document follows standard industry practice and is intended to ensure legal finality of compensation settlements, not shield third parties from liability. The airline has paid interim compensation of ₹25 lakh per victim. The Tata Group is additionally providing an ex gratia payment of ₹1 crore to each victim's family.

Under the Montreal Convention, the airline is liable to pay 151,880 special drawing rights (SDRs) per deceased passenger-approximately ₹1.9 crore at current exchange rates. Lawyers handling victim compensation cases note that liability could increase if negligence is proven and will also depend on the laws of the jurisdiction where cases are filed.

A preliminary report by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, which is probing the Boeing 787 crash, pointed to manual intervention as the cause. It found that seconds after take-off, the fuel control switches on both engines briefly moved from 'run' to 'cut off', severing fuel supply and causing loss of power.