Kozhikode International Airport has suffered Rs 3.5 crore loss due to the rampage caused due to a clash between the CISF personnel and the AAI staff at the airport on June 10.
The fire and rescue department alone has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 1.5 crore on damages to several of its vehicles.
Soon after the death of the fellow jawan Suresh Singh Yadav, the CISF contingent there had unleashed vandalism at the airport premises, including the high-security areas, by destroying valuable equipment.
This caused disruption in the working of the airport, which remained closed for eight hours. Airport operations, however, resumed the following day morning.
At least five overseas flights were diverted to Cochin International Airport and several services were rescheduled on June 11.
Expressing the incident as a shocker, Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy said a high-level meeting would be called to review the security system at various airports in the state to ensure such incidents do not recur.
The Kerala police today arrested eight fire personnel in connection with the incident.
Meanwhile, a preliminary enquiry report of the Kerala police nailed personnel of both the CISF and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) as equally responsible for the violence at the airport.
The report, prepared by northern region ADGP, N Shanker Reddy, said there was no security lapse at the airport. “There weren’t any intruder from outside. The clash between the staff at the airport cannot be viewed as a security lapse,” said in the report. Further, the report added flights could not land as the lights along the runway had been shattered. It took four hours to regain normalcy at the airport. It noted higher officials should keep vigil not to repeat such untoward incidents.
Yadav was ‘shot at with a pistol’
The police report revealed the CISF jawan killed in the firing died of a bullet injury fired from a pistol.
“What Yadav carried with him at the time of the attack was a rifle. The bullet broke his chin and damaged the brain, causing the sudden death.”
Senior officers of the CISF handed over two guns - a pistol auto 9mm and an INSAS rifle - to the investigating police team. CCTV footage of the first altercation clearly showed a gang of fire and rescue personnel assaulting the CISF jawan.
Yadav was shot at while trying to resist the attack. The footage also showed the fire and rescue personnel chasing and assaulting Sitaram Choudhary, another CISF soldier. CCTV visuals also showed a group of 10-15 CISF personnel, both in uniform and in civil dress, smashing window panes with stones and batons.
They pulled down an expensive painting from the wall, broke lights and window panes, creating mayhem after the news of the death of Yadav was spread.
Later, there was a vehicles chase on the run way by both CISF and fire and rescue personal which disrupted the run way operations for hours together.
The footage showed a man, claimed to be a CISF official in mufti, directing his men to destroy the property around, while another in uniform was seen smashing a window pane by stamping it with his boot and baton.
Taking a serious view of the incident, Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said the CCTV footage was being examined and after that action will be taken.
Since Wednesday night, a special squad of Kerala police is camping at the airport, where the situation is now under control, he said.
Meanwhile, two fire force officials denied the charge that they had tried to snatch the rifle from a CISF jawan. However, Ajikumar, a fire force personnel with whom the CISF guards had an argument over security check, said that he is innocent.
Claiming that the Fire and Rescue personnel had complained against the CISF several times in the past, Ajikumar said it was the CISF force that attacked the airport staff first.
Police report stated that Fire and Rescue staff members attacked the CISF personnel while discharging their duty. However, the death of Yadav was accidental. It happened while Sitaram Chowdhary, CISF sub inspector, was taking his pistol for self defense. The bullet first injured Chowdhary then struck on the chin of Yadav.
The fire and rescue department alone has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 1.5 crore on damages to several of its vehicles.
Soon after the death of the fellow jawan Suresh Singh Yadav, the CISF contingent there had unleashed vandalism at the airport premises, including the high-security areas, by destroying valuable equipment.
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The CISF personnel had damaged many equipment at the air traffic control besides destroying glass panels and lights at several areas, including on the airport runway.
This caused disruption in the working of the airport, which remained closed for eight hours. Airport operations, however, resumed the following day morning.
At least five overseas flights were diverted to Cochin International Airport and several services were rescheduled on June 11.
Expressing the incident as a shocker, Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy said a high-level meeting would be called to review the security system at various airports in the state to ensure such incidents do not recur.
The Kerala police today arrested eight fire personnel in connection with the incident.
Meanwhile, a preliminary enquiry report of the Kerala police nailed personnel of both the CISF and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) as equally responsible for the violence at the airport.
The report, prepared by northern region ADGP, N Shanker Reddy, said there was no security lapse at the airport. “There weren’t any intruder from outside. The clash between the staff at the airport cannot be viewed as a security lapse,” said in the report. Further, the report added flights could not land as the lights along the runway had been shattered. It took four hours to regain normalcy at the airport. It noted higher officials should keep vigil not to repeat such untoward incidents.
Yadav was ‘shot at with a pistol’
The police report revealed the CISF jawan killed in the firing died of a bullet injury fired from a pistol.
“What Yadav carried with him at the time of the attack was a rifle. The bullet broke his chin and damaged the brain, causing the sudden death.”
Senior officers of the CISF handed over two guns - a pistol auto 9mm and an INSAS rifle - to the investigating police team. CCTV footage of the first altercation clearly showed a gang of fire and rescue personnel assaulting the CISF jawan.
Yadav was shot at while trying to resist the attack. The footage also showed the fire and rescue personnel chasing and assaulting Sitaram Choudhary, another CISF soldier. CCTV visuals also showed a group of 10-15 CISF personnel, both in uniform and in civil dress, smashing window panes with stones and batons.
They pulled down an expensive painting from the wall, broke lights and window panes, creating mayhem after the news of the death of Yadav was spread.
Later, there was a vehicles chase on the run way by both CISF and fire and rescue personal which disrupted the run way operations for hours together.
The footage showed a man, claimed to be a CISF official in mufti, directing his men to destroy the property around, while another in uniform was seen smashing a window pane by stamping it with his boot and baton.
Taking a serious view of the incident, Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said the CCTV footage was being examined and after that action will be taken.
Since Wednesday night, a special squad of Kerala police is camping at the airport, where the situation is now under control, he said.
Meanwhile, two fire force officials denied the charge that they had tried to snatch the rifle from a CISF jawan. However, Ajikumar, a fire force personnel with whom the CISF guards had an argument over security check, said that he is innocent.
Claiming that the Fire and Rescue personnel had complained against the CISF several times in the past, Ajikumar said it was the CISF force that attacked the airport staff first.
Police report stated that Fire and Rescue staff members attacked the CISF personnel while discharging their duty. However, the death of Yadav was accidental. It happened while Sitaram Chowdhary, CISF sub inspector, was taking his pistol for self defense. The bullet first injured Chowdhary then struck on the chin of Yadav.