3 days ago
Newly-wed groom, would-be parents among plane crash victims from Gujarat
Isha Maheshwari can't stop looking at her mehendi-darkened hands as she waits in a daze for news of her husband, Bhavik. It's only been two days since the couple married but even before it could fully sink it, Bhavik's life was tragically cut short by the Air India plane crash Thursday.
Bhavik, 26, was a passenger on seat number 26F on the London-bound B787 Boeing Dreamliner Air India flight carrying 242 passengers and crew members that crashed in Ahmedabad's Meghaninagar area near the city's airport Thursday afternoon, minutes after taking off from the Sardar Vallabhbhai International Airport Ahmedabad.
The flight had only one survivor — Vishwas Kumar Ramesh, a passenger on seat 11A.
Bhavik, who lives in London, came back home to Vadodara 10 days ago for the wedding on June 10. As soon as she heard the news, Isha, 26, fainted, her family tells The Indian Express. 'Isha ki toh mehndi bhi nahi sukhi hai,' her aunt tells The Indian Express as the family waited in the basement of Institute of Kidney Disease and Research Centre (IKRDC) on the Civil hospital campus.
Loud wails ring across the auditorium as tense families wait for news. The weeping and wailing stops only when the names of passengers are called out.
Also waiting for news were Nautik Mate, 27, and his wife Shibhangi. Nautik's sister 27-year-old Pooja and 30-year-old brother-in-law Harshit were among the flight's passengers. The couple had been expecting a baby and were on their first visit back home after they moved to the United Kingdom a year ago.
'Pooja was on a study visa that got extended recently. Both met each at a job in Ahmedabad and got married around six years ago. Pooja was visiting for a medical checkup,' her friend Anand Sharma tells The Indian Express as he tries to console the family.
In one corner, Trupti Soni waits for news of her brother Swapnil, 45, his wife Yoga, 44, and another sister-in-law, Alpa. The family was on its way to London to meet her brother and Alpa's husband Nishit, who had set off on a road trip from Ahmedabad to London three months ago and was to reach his destination Friday.
The family was seated next to former Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, who also died in the crash.
'My brother and sisters-in-law had planned to reach London to receive Nishit. Look at God's will. Now Nishit had to cut his trip short to get here,' Trupti says.
In the auditorium, Jignesh and Janki Patel are waiting for any news of their relatives, Kokilaben Patel, 65, and Shashikantbhai Patel, 70. The couple from Anand were on their way to London to meet their son,
'My cousin called from London and informed us that his parents were onboard this flight. We knew they were flying but were not sure about their dates and flight,' Janki says.
Ranjanben Patel, 63, and Pravinbhai Patel, 64, from Kheda too were on their annual visit to London, where their son Mehul lives. 'They visit him every year but this is beyond our wildest imagination,' their relative Jigar Patel, 31, says.
