Statesman, Kolkata
July 1, 2003:

BARASAT June 30.-Three witnesses, including the complainant in the Soe Myint case on the 1990 hijack of a Bangkok-Yangon Thai Airways flight to Kolkata by pro-democracy Myanmarese students, appeared in Barasat court today. Other witnesses have been summoned tomorrow. Mr. Soe Myint, Myanmarese student, was charged with hijacking the aircraft and forcing it to land at NSC Bose Airport in Kolkata.

Mr. Sunil Kumar Mondal, who was officer-in-charge in Airport police station at the time of hijack and lodged the complaint on which the case started, appeared in court this morning. However, Mr. Mondal admitted before the court that he had no personal knowledge whatsoever regarding the incident of hijacking. He said that he had rushed to the spot at the instruction of them DIG (Pr) and Superintendent of Police, ( North 24-Paganas) and tried to collect information about the hijacking of the plane. But he did not find anybody to lodge complaint with the police station. Later under the instruction of superior officials, he himself lodged complaint sub motto. He later handed over the case for investigation to another sub-inspector for investigation.

The other two witnesses present at the court were explosive and fingerprint experts. The explosive expert said that he had spotted a doll in the possession of Mr. Myint. After examination of the doll, it was found that there was no explosive within it. The material found inside was a soup derivative. The fingerprint expert said that all fingerprints were checked thoroughly.

Mr. Madhab Sanyal, a defence lawyer of Mr. Myint, said, " some of the witnesses have turned up in the court today. Other witnesses have been summoned for hearing the case. I countered Mr. Sunil Kumar Mondal, ex-OC, the main complaint of the case who admitted that he has no knowledge regarding the hijack of the plane".