Bholanath Pandey, on his part, resents being called a hijacker. "It was purely a political protest for a great Indian leader (Indira Gandhi) who was sent to jail unfairly," he says of his December 20, 1978, adventure when he and Devendra Pandey, another diehard Indira loyalist, commandeered an IA flight as it flew over Aligarh. "We had no weapons and as we entered the cabin we announced our intention to the passengers," says Bholanath, who unsuccessfully contested the 1999 Lok Sabha elections from Salempur. The 132 passengers were held hostage for some hours before the two called it quits in the presence of the media. Soon after, both men became active Congressmen. Bholanath and Devendra were elected to the Vidhan Sabha in 1980. Bhola served as a Congress mla from 1980 to 1985 while Devendra remained a member of the house for two terms. Devendra, upcc general secretary till recently, is now nurturing Sultanpur constituency in the hope of a Congress ticket in the next elections. Even though the Congress has condemned the recent hijacking, it cant gloss over the fact that it has been patronising hijackers.