‘Held Severed Head Of Child To…’: Air India Crash Victim’s Kin Recalls Haunting Task To Identify Relatives

Ahmedabad: With the first anniversary of the Air India flight AI-171 crash in Ahmedabad approaching, the tragedy continues to haunt the families of the victims and survivors, many of whom are still grappling with the trauma of that unfortunate day.

Relative Recalls Losing Family Members

In this tragic crash, a young man from Kheda district, Romin Vohra, lost three close family members, including his brother, his three-year-old niece, and his maternal aunt. Although he works in the medical field, the heartbreaking scenes he witnessed at the crash site and the painful task of identifying his loved ones left a lasting impact on him. Even 11 months after the accident, the memories of that day continue to haunt him.

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Recalling the spine-chilling details of the tragedy, Vohra said, “I can never forget that night or those horrific scenes. When I arrived at the crash site, there was nothing there but chaos and anguish. I held in my hands the severed head of an innocent, incredibly beautiful little girl, aged between two and three years. She had tiny earrings in her ears and short, cropped hair. Examining her face closely, I tried to match it against a photograph of my niece.”

Those Scenes Still Haunt Me, Says Romin

He added, “The face of that innocent child lay in my hands... It is a moment I will never be able to forget until my dying breath. It has been 11 months now, yet I haven't been able to get a single full night's sleep.” Romin further described how, amidst the wreckage, it was not merely human bodies that lay scattered, but fragments of humanity itself. He said the scenes at the crash site were beyond anything he had ever witnessed.

Romin recalled seeing severed body parts laid out separately on tables as authorities worked to identify the victims. Among them was the body of a woman who appeared to be around six months pregnant and was dressed in a traditional Rajasthani Rajwadi saree. While parts of her clothing remained untouched, the force of the explosion had caused severe injuries. He also remembered seeing the remains of several male victims whose bodies had been completely burned, leaving only charred skeletal remains behind.

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The Irreparable Loss

Romin said the loss of his family members continues to haunt him every day. His brother was just 11 months older than him, while his three-year-old niece had practically grown up by his side. He said he loved her dearly, even more than his own children. “Whenever memories of the tragedy come back at night, I wake up suddenly from sleep. Even during the day, thinking about those moments brings tears to my eyes as I wonder how much pain my brother, my niece, and my aunt must have endured at that time,” Romin added.