PAN AM 73
PAN AM 73
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Letter to Prime Minister of India
May 24, 2010
The Honorable Dr. Manmohan Singh
Prime Minister of India
New Delhi
Dear Prime Minister Dr. Singh,
On September 5, 1986, 14 Indians died and over 100 were injured, many of them seriously, at Karachi airport. All of them were victims of a terrorist attack on a Pan Am plane (PA73) going from Mumbai to New York via Karachi. The plane was hijacked on the tarmac at Karachi Airport by a terrorist group backed by Libya.
Libya had been a hotbed of terrorism and had sponsored many such acts all over the world, although, till date, it refuses to publicly acknowledge this. Yet, it settled and paid out billions of dollars as compensation money to the victims because of the tremendous pressure applied by the leading powers of the world, including USA, France, UK, Germany etc. who espoused the rights of their citizens.
An important offshoot of the tremendous diplomatic, political AND financial pressure was that ultimately Libya renounced terrorism and transformed itself from a ‘rogue’ nation to a respectable citizen of the world.
Espousal of the rights of its citizens and creating a huge financial burden on terrorist sponsoring nations seems like an important part of the strategy of the ‘powerful’ nations of the world to combat terrorism. As India takes its rightful place as a ‘Superpower’ in the world arena, it also needs to strongly adopt this policy.
The PA73 case is a perfect opportunity for our Nation to set an example for rogue nations around the world, including our neighborhood, that if they indulge in any mischievous and terrorist activity against India and its citizens, or provide logistical support to it, India will hit back at them not only politically, diplomatically but also financially and make them pay a huge price for their misdemeanors.
A note on the PA73 case is attached. We seek an appointment with you to give our suggestions for your consideration on how India could send such a clear message to the rogue nations of the world while espousing the rights of our citizens.
Yours faithfully,
Aneesh Bhanot
Member – Liaison Group
`
The Honorable Dr. Manmohan Singh
Prime Minister of India
New Delhi
Dear Prime Minister Dr. Singh,
On September 5, 1986, 14 Indians died and over 100 were injured, many of them seriously, at Karachi airport. All of them were victims of a terrorist attack on a Pan Am plane (PA73) going from Mumbai to New York via Karachi. The plane was hijacked on the tarmac at Karachi Airport by a terrorist group backed by Libya.
Libya had been a hotbed of terrorism and had sponsored many such acts all over the world, although, till date, it refuses to publicly acknowledge this. Yet, it settled and paid out billions of dollars as compensation money to the victims because of the tremendous pressure applied by the leading powers of the world, including USA, France, UK, Germany etc. who espoused the rights of their citizens.
An important offshoot of the tremendous diplomatic, political AND financial pressure was that ultimately Libya renounced terrorism and transformed itself from a ‘rogue’ nation to a respectable citizen of the world.
Espousal of the rights of its citizens and creating a huge financial burden on terrorist sponsoring nations seems like an important part of the strategy of the ‘powerful’ nations of the world to combat terrorism. As India takes its rightful place as a ‘Superpower’ in the world arena, it also needs to strongly adopt this policy.
The PA73 case is a perfect opportunity for our Nation to set an example for rogue nations around the world, including our neighborhood, that if they indulge in any mischievous and terrorist activity against India and its citizens, or provide logistical support to it, India will hit back at them not only politically, diplomatically but also financially and make them pay a huge price for their misdemeanors.
A note on the PA73 case is attached. We seek an appointment with you to give our suggestions for your consideration on how India could send such a clear message to the rogue nations of the world while espousing the rights of our citizens.
Yours faithfully,
Aneesh Bhanot
Member – Liaison Group
`
JUSTICE FOR VICTIMS OF PAN AM FLIGHT 73
Justice for Victims of Pan AM Flight 73: September 5, 1986: Karachi Pakistan
| The Incident | Culprits | Victims | US Self Interests |
| Pan Am Flight 73, Scheduled to fly from Mumbai to New York, via Karachi and Frankfurt on Sep 5, 1986 | Hijackers were members of ANO an Abu Nidal organization, Al-quaeda of 1980s | Approximately 390 victims on Pan Am Flight 73 | In 2008 US congress passes Libyan claims resolution act and normalizes relations with Libya |
| The Flight was hijacked ~ 5 AM in Karachi on the tarmac. | Libya provided logistic support, intelligence, ammunition and diplomatic cover for ANOs operation | ~280 were either Indian Nationals or Non-Resident Indians ( NRIs) | US negotiates and signs a 1.5 billion dollar deal to settle all terrorism related cases pending against Libya |
| All American Cockpit crew abandons ship and escapes after being warned by Chief Purser Neerja Bhanot | Hijackers choose Karachi since it was easy target, and Pakistani Government was sympathetic to their cause. | 15 of 20 killed were Indians, Including two US nationals or NRIs | Bush administration espouses only the claims of US nationals. And disowning Indian passengers and the heroic Cabin Crew. |
| An all Indian Flight crew save US lives by hiding American passports. | Pan AM 73 Hijacking was Quadafi ‘s revenge for American bombing of Tripoli | Over 120 of the wounded were Indian nationals or NRIs | Pan AM 103 settlement with Libya does not discriminate between US nationals and non US nationals |
| 16 hours later, when the auxiliary power fails, Innocent passengers were massacred in the hail of bullets, hand grenades and AK 47s | Pan Am 73 was a dry run for Pan AM 103 over Lockerbie, where all 280 people were killed. | The youngest victim was a 7 year old boy. Ashoka Chakra winner Neerja Bhanot sacrificed her life so that others lived. | Flight crew of Pan Am 73 honored by US attorney general in April 2006. This special courage award was the first time non us nationals were the recipients. |
Call for Action: Families from Pan Am Flight 73 Urge Government of India to
Coordinate with The US Justice and State departments to corroborate the victims’ findings on Libyan culpability.
Develop a cell within the External affairs ministry to negotiate with Libya to compensate Pan Am 73 victims of Indian Origin.
Follow the examples of other countries –US, UK, Germany, France and Now Ireland to hold Libya accountable for this terror attack on Indian nationals and seek settlement along the lines of Pan Am 103 families.
The French government withheld approval of removing UN sanctions against Libya, until the French citizens were compensated for UTA bombing.
Hold Pakistan responsible for its role in Pan AM 73, Mumbai bombing attacks and numerous other terrorist acts.
The Liaison Group : Representing the Victims and Families from Pan Am Flight 73
Mr. Aneesh Bhanot (Chandigarh – 98-15-04-70-17); Mr. Gopal Dadhirao (New York – 845-664-3776); Ms. Madhvi Bahuguna (Connecticut), Mr. Jay Grantier (Washington State) , Dr. Prabhat Krishnaswamy (Ohio – 614-419-5386) email : PANAM73LG@GMAIL.COM
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