Tragedy struck when the former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was among the 241 people who died in an Air India aircraft crash just minutes after taking off from Ahmedabad on Thursday. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was destined for London Gatwick but crashed on a medical college hostel in flames.
Vijay Rupani, 68, one of the top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), was Gujarat Chief Minister from 2016 to 2021. He was said to be on his way to London to visit family members when the plane crashed.
This crash is part of a dismal history of aerial mishaps that have taken the lives of several high-profile politicians in India. Here’s the retrospect of some of the highest profile politicians to have died in such crashes:
Sanjay Gandhi (1980)
The son of the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Sanjay Gandhi was a major political player in his life before his death. He died in a plane crash on June 23, 1980, after flying a two-seater aircraft on a test flight near the Safdarjung Airport in New Delhi.
Madhavrao Scindia (2001)
A top Congress leader and member of the Gwalior princely family, Madhavrao Scindia was dead as his chartered plane crashed at Bhogaon in the Mainpuri district of Uttar Pradesh on September 30, 2001. He was on his way to address a rally at Kanpur, and all the passengers were killed.
GMC Balayogi (2002)
Then Lok Sabha Speaker and leader of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) GMC Balayogi was killed in a helicopter crash in Andhra Pradesh’s West Godavari district on March 3, 2002, because of a mid-air mechanical failure.
Dorjee Khandu (2011)
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu died when his helicopter crashed in a remote area near the China border on April 30, 2011. It was discovered five days later.
YS Rajasekhara Reddy (2009)
Popularly known as YSR, the then Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh died in a helicopter accident in the Nallamala Hills on September 2, 2009. His crash site was discovered after a massive search operation.
OP Jindal and Surender Singh (2005)
Industrialist OP Jindal and Union Minister Surender Singh, son of former President Shankar Dayal Sharma, were killed in a helicopter crash at Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, on 31 March 2005.
Gurnam Singh (1973)
Punjab’s former Chief Minister Gurnam Singh also perished in an aircraft crash in Delhi on 31 May 1973.
Balwantrai Mehta (1965)
The second Chief Minister of Gujarat, Balwantrai Mehta, was killed when a Pakistani Air Force aircraft mistakenly shot down his civilian aircraft during the 1965 war while he took an official visit near the India-Pakistan border.
The deaths of these two leaders have evoked the tragic risk public figures take while flying, leaving permanent impressions on their families and Indian politics.
