During the Dubai Air Show, a Tejas fighter jet crashed moments after take-off on Friday, killing its lone pilot, Wing Commander Namansh Syal. As India mourns the loss of the 34-year-old officer, a shocking video has surfaced online showing a “Pakistani journalist” laughing while filming the crash site. People have been bashing him left, right and centre online for his insensitive remarks.
‘Pakistani journalist’s disturbing video’
The now-viral video from Dubai opens to show a Pakistani journalist laughing while walking towards the crash site as thick black smoke can be seen rising in the distance. As the video goes on, he says, “Allah ki taraf se gaya. Allah ne dekho aaj hame kuch bheja hai [Allah made this happen… see what Allah has sent our way today].”
He then tells people about the “breaking news” that an Indian fighter jet, Tejas has crashed. The “journalist” then falsely claims that the same jet had an oil leak a day earlier – a rumour debunked by the PIB Fact Check unit, which confirmed that there was no such issue with the Tejas.
“Ye is side nahi gira shukar hai… [It didn’t fall on our side, thankfully],” said one of the people behind the camera as the “journalist” adds, “Hum shaheed hone se bach gaye [We got saved from being martyred].”
The video ends with the two of them bursting into laughter.
Pakistani journalist who recorded Tejas crash is laughing at the Indian pilot's death.
— BALA (@erbmjha) November 21, 2025
Dear Indians, never show sympathy for the death of any Pakistani. They deserve the worst.
As someone rightly said “a good Pakistani is a dead Pakistani” pic.twitter.com/C1vQ5XSvSG
‘Very bad act, shameful,’ says Internet
This disrespectful behaviour triggered strong reactions across social media, with one saying, “It’s sad that some people let the political conflict completely erase their basic human empathy. Disgusting!”
“Laughing at someone’s death is despicable. There has to be a sense of morality, but I think our neighbour has lost it, like it lost East Pakistan,” added another.
A third posted, “Very bad act, shameful.”
“As a Pakistani national, we totally reject this type of behaviour,” added a fourth.
‘I saw reports about crash on YouTube’: Father
According to a report by The Indian Express, Syal’s father was searching for videos of his son’s performance at the air show on YouTube when he learnt about his death.
“I last spoke to my son yesterday. He told me to see his performance during the air show on TV channels or YouTube. Around 4 pm today, I was searching videos of the ongoing air show in Dubai on YouTube when I saw reports about the plane crash,” his father Jagannath Syal told IE. He served in the Indian Army’s Medical Corps and later worked in the education department, retiring as a principal.
He added, “Immediately, I called my daughter-in-law, who is also a Wing Commander, to check what happened. Moments later, at least six Air Force officers arrived at our house, and I realised something bad had happened to my son.”
His father said that Namansh joined the defence forces after clearing the NDA exam in 2009. He completed his schooling from Primary School Dalhousie, Army Public School, YoL Cantt Dharamshala and Sainik School, Sujanpur Tira, in Himachal Pradesh. “He was excellent in studies and dreamt big about his life. This incident left us completely shattered,” he went on to say.
The 34-year-old Wing Commander Namansh Syal was originally from Patiyalkar village in Tehsil Nagrota Bagwan in Himachal Pradesh. He is survived by his wife, also an Indian Air Force (IAF) officer, their six-year-old daughter and his parents.