"My Father Was Also on the Hijacked Plane in 1984..."

 

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar revealed on Friday that his father was on a hijacked plane in 1984, during which Jaishankar himself played a dual role. On one hand, he was serving as a government official, and on the other, he was a member of the family directly affected by the hijacking.

Jaishankar shared this personal story while responding to questions during a discussion on the 1999 IC 814 hijacking series airing on Netflix. He mentioned that in 1984, he was a young government officer and was directly involved in resolving the situation related to the hijacking. During the tense negotiations, he learned from his mother that his father was one of the passengers on the hijacked Indian Airlines flight en route from Delhi to Srinagar, which was hijacked over Pathankot on August 24, 1984.

Jaishankar disclosed that he was actively engaged in discussions with the hijackers as a government representative. He pointed out that, although he has not watched the Netflix series on the IC 814 hijacking, this earlier incident held a deep personal connection for him due to his family's involvement. At that time, Jaishankar was an IAS officer, while his father, Subrahmanyam, was also an IAS officer. This dual role added a unique and intense layer to his experience during the hijacking ordeal.