Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar expressed his condolences on the death of Malawi Vice President Saulos Chilima in a plane crash. The Vice President offered condolences to the family of Malawi Vice President.
Moreover, he said that India stands in solidarity with Malawi at this tragic time.
"Deeply saddened to learn about the tragic demise of the Vice President of the Republic of Malawi, Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima in a plane crash. Our heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased leader. India stands in solidarity with Malawi at this tragic time," Dhankhar said in a post on X.
Malawi Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine other people, including his wife, were killed as the plane they were onboard crashed in the Chikangawa mountain range, CBS News reported, citing the government.
Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera declared Tuesday a national day of mourning. The announcement was made in a statement released by the Office of the President and Cabinet.
The statement reads, unfortunately, all on board have perished in the crash, which happened on Monday morning after the military aircraft took off from Malawi's capital Lilongwe.
Saulos Chilima and others onboard the aircraft were travelling to attend the funeral of Malawi's former attorney general when their plane dropped off the radar, according to CBS News report.
Air traffic officials said the plane was not able to land at Mzuzu airport, about 200 miles north of Lilongwe, due to poor visibility, and the pilot had been advised to head to the capital when the flight disappeared.
Several nations, including the US, provided technological support to Malawi in the search operation, CBS News reported.
Chilima (51) was seen in Malawi as a possible contender for the presidential election set to be held in 2025. Earlier in 2022, he was arrested on graft allegations, amid reports that he had received kickbacks from a businessman for government contracts. However, the charges were denied by Chilima, the report said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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