The District and Sessions Courts of Islamabad have delivered a landmark judgment in compensation claims arising from the tragic Airblue plane crash of 2010, rejecting all eight appeals filed by the airline and imposing heavy financial penalties.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Dr. Rasool Bakhsh Mirjat issued detailed written verdicts on a total of 16 appeals, including eight filed by the victims and eight by Airblue. The court ordered Airblue to pay a total compensation amount of Rs 5.41 billion (Rs 5,417,800,000) to the families of those killed and injured in the crash. The court also imposed a penalty of Rs 100,000 per appeal, amounting to Rs 8 million, on the airline for frivolous litigation and wasting judicial time.
According to the court’s decision, Samira Naveed Chaudhry and two other claimants are to receive Rs 143.189 million in compensation. Similarly, Rashid Zulfiqar and four other victims were awarded Rs 630.94 million.
The court further directed Airblue to pay Rs 1,101.868 million to Muhammad Ilyas, Rs 507.348 million to Gohar Rehman, and Rs 996.048 million to Junaid-uz-Zaman Hamid as damages.
In addition, compensation awards were issued in favor of Muhammad Javed Khan (Rs 857.025 million), Saleema Rajput (Rs 572.666 million), and Colonel (Retd.) Shameem Akhtar (Rs 606 million).
The judgment noted that the victims had challenged earlier rulings of the civil court, which had limited compensation to Rs 10 million per person. Accepting the victims’ arguments, the sessions court significantly enhanced the compensation amounts, holding that the earlier cap failed to adequately reflect the scale of loss suffered by the families.
The court strongly criticized Airblue for engaging in unnecessary and prolonged litigation, observing that the airline’s conduct resulted in undue delays and misuse of judicial resources, thereby justifying the imposition of fines.
The verdict also recalled that the appeals had earlier been heard by the Islamabad High Court but were later remanded back to the sessions courts after the High Court determined that the matters fell within the jurisdiction of the sessions judiciary. The sessions court has now issued a final determination on all pending appeals.
Legal experts have described the ruling as a significant precedent in Pakistan’s aviation jurisprudence, stating that it strengthens accountability and reinforces the right of victims’ families to adequate compensation.
The Airblue aircraft crashed into the Margalla Hills near Islamabad on July 28, 2010, killing all 152 passengers and crew members on board, in one of the deadliest aviation disasters in Pakistan’s history
