By News18,Sameeksha Sharma

Copyright news18

Amid the ongoing violence in Nepal, the name making the most headlines is that of Sushila Karki. Following the resignation of former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, her name has emerged as a possible interim head of the country.
Sushila Karki, who created history by becoming Nepal’s first woman Chief Justice on July 11, 2016, earned a reputation for her bold rulings against corruption during her one-year tenure, making her a role model in the eyes of the youth.
Yet, in a twist of irony, Sushila is married to Durga Prasad Subedi, a former youth leader of the Nepali Congress, whom she met while studying at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi. What stands out is that Subedi was once part of one of Nepal’s most infamous incidents, the country’s first plane hijacking in 1973, an episode in which Bollywood star Mala Sinha happened to be on board.
Mala Sinha, regarded as one of Hindi cinema’s most graceful and talented actresses, had left audiences spellbound with her performances opposite legends like Dharmendra, Dev Anand, and Raj Kapoor. Known for her radiant smile, she was at the height of her career when fate drew her into this dramatic episode. The celebrated Bollywood actress had performed in classics such as Pyaasa and Geet.
On June 10, 1973, a Royal Nepal Airlines flight was travelling from Biratnagar to Kathmandu. Mala Sinha was among the 19 passengers on board when the aircraft was suddenly hijacked. Shockingly, the hijack was not carried out by terrorists but by Durga Prasad Subedi, then a young leader of the Nepali Congress.
The sensational event shook both Nepal’s politics and Bollywood. The target was not the passengers but the Rs 30 lakh being transported on the flight. The hijacking was orchestrated under the leadership of senior Nepali Congress figure Girija Prasad Koirala, who sought to raise funds for an armed struggle against the monarchy.
The plane was forced to land in Forbesganj, Bihar, from where the money was transported to Darjeeling by car. Subedi and his accomplices were eventually arrested in Mumbai, though they were later released during the Emergency in 1975. This incident remains one of the most unusual and politically significant hijackings in South Asia’s history, forever linking Bollywood glamour with Nepal’s turbulent political past.