Two Years Before ‘Neerja’ Hijacking: The Curious Case of IC 421

In 1984, Air India’s IC-421 was hijacked by Sikh separatists. Thankfully, this story has a happy ending.

Anita Singh’s ‘Neeja’ experience ended with no one injured, thankfully. (Photo: The Quint)

Video Editor: Purnendu Pritam

On August 24, 1984, two years before the Pan Am tragedy that turned Neerja Bhanot into a national hero, an Air India flight – IC-421– was hijacked by a group of Sikh separatists, disillusioned with the country after Operation Blue Star. Ms Anita Singh, who served on the flight, recounts the strange tale for The Quint.

The Hijackers

These men were nothing like the terrorists you see in <i>Neerja</i>. All seven of them were very young, between the ages of 19-25, I would say. They seemed like inexperienced boys picked up from rural hinterlands. It became evident during the course of the flight that only one of them had had a dry run on an airplane before; the others knew nothing about aviation or flight procedures. This made it easier for us to invent fake snags while appearing to be helpful.

Anita Singh

Fake Bombs, Poison Pins & ‘Wrong’ Sloganeering

The hijackers were not armed in the beginning. They fixed a digital watch on a camera, wrapped it in cloth and brandished it like a time bomb. Thanks to my training, I knew it was a fake because time bombs need the hands of a watch to make contact to explode. They also had turban pins they claimed were poisonous. So they had a lot of imagination but they weren’t really equipped.

Anita Singh

The seven of them, perhaps in an effort to rouse themselves, led a round of slogans. They made us shout out responses to ‘Khalistan Zindabad’, ‘Bhindranwale Zindabad’, which we did very reluctantly. At one point, however, one of the hijackers got carried away with the sloganeering and shouted out ‘Pakistan Murdabad’. He was hurriedly hauled off by the leader, who yelled out an obscenity in alarm, to an alcove for a quick reprimand. This incident became comprehensible when we landed in Lahore and I saw an official provide the hijacker with weapons.

Anita Singh

Not With a Bang, But With a Song

The hijacking, the longest in Indian aviation history with over 36 hours, came to an end in Dubai, where the UAE authorities took them into protective custody with false promises of political asylum in the US. Kissy, one of the hijackers who looked 15 but was actually 22, even sang of homecoming on his way out. He had a beautiful singing voice...

Anita Singh

As I wrap up the interview, I can see that it is her infectious, sunny sense of humour that has helped the woman sitting in front of me weather an eventful career with grace and warmth.

Well, that and bungling hijackers.