On This Day: 22 May

22 May in Indian history

• 2010Upon landing in Mangalore, Air India Express Flight 812 overshot the runway and fell down a hillside, killing 158 of the 166 people on board.India
• 2000In Sri Lanka, over 150 Tamil rebels are killed over two days of fighting for control in Jaffna.India
• 1987During Hindu–Muslim rioting in Meerut, India, 19 members of the Provincial Armed Constabulary allegedly massacred 42 Muslims and dumped their bodies in water canals.India

22 May in world history

• 2020Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303 crashes in Model Colony near Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan, killing 98 people.
• 2015The Republic of Ireland becomes the first nation in the world to utilise a public referendum to legalise gay marriage.
• 2012SpaceX COTS Demo Flight 2 launches a Dragon capsule on a Falcon 9 rocket in the first commercial flight to the International Space Station.
• 2002Civil rights movement: A jury in Birmingham, Alabama, convicts former Ku Klux Klan member Bobby Frank Cherry of the 1963 murder of four girls in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing.
• 1998In Public Prosecutor v Taw Cheng Kong, the Court of Appeal of Singapore overruled a High Court decision in the only time a statute in Singapore had been ruled unconstitutional.
• 1992Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Slovenia join the United Nations.
• 1987First ever Rugby World Cup kicks off with New Zealand playing Italy at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand.
• 1942Mexico enters the Second World War on the side of the Allies.
• 1911The Uruguayan Regional Workers' Federation declared a general strike in solidarity with trolley workers in Montevideo.
• 1905The Sultan of the Ottoman Empire Abdul Hamid II establishes the Ullah millet for the Aromanians of the empire. For this reason, the Aromanian National Day is sometimes celebrated on this day, although most do so on May 23 instead, which is when this event was
• 1872Reconstruction Era: President Ulysses S. Grant signs the Amnesty Act into law, restoring full civil and political rights to all but about 500 Confederate sympathizers.
• 1856Senator Charles Sumner was assaulted by Representative Preston Brooks in the United States Senate chamber in retaliation for a speech in which Sumner fiercely criticized slaveholders.
• 1844In Shiraz, Iran, the Báb declared himself to be a messenger of God to Mullá Husayn, leading to the foundation of Bábism, considered to be a precursor to the Baháʼí Faith.
• 1826HMS Beagle departed on her first voyage from Plymouth for a hydrographic survey of the Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego regions of South America.
• 853Arab–Byzantine wars: The Byzantine navy began a raid on the Nile Delta port city of Damietta, whose garrison was absent at the time.

Born on 22 May

• 1987Novak Djokovic, Serbian tennis player
• 1979Maggie Q, American actress
• 1973Shefali Shah, Indian actressIndia
• 1948Nedumudi Venu, Indian actor and screenwriter (died 2021)India
• 1930Marisol Escobar, French-American sculptor (died 2016)
• 1408Annamacharya, Hindu saint (died 1503)India

Died on 22 May

• 1991Shripad Amrit Dange, Indian lawyer and politician (born 1899)India
• 1983Albert Claude, Belgian biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1899)
• 1851Mordecai Manuel Noah, American journalist and diplomat (born 1755)
• 1545Sher Shah Suri, Indian ruler (born 1486)India

Frequently asked questions

What happened on 22 May in history?

2020: Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303 crashes in Model Colony near Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan, killing 98 people. 2015: The Republic of Ireland becomes the first nation in the world to utilise a public referendum to legalise gay marriage. 2012: SpaceX COTS Demo Flight 2 launches a Dragon capsule on a Falcon 9 rocket in the first commercial flight to the International Space Station. 2010: Upon landing in Mangalore, Air India Express Flight 812 overshot the runway and fell down a hillside, killing 158 of the 166 people on board.

What happened on 22 May in Indian history?

2010: Upon landing in Mangalore, Air India Express Flight 812 overshot the runway and fell down a hillside, killing 158 of the 166 people on board. 2000: In Sri Lanka, over 150 Tamil rebels are killed over two days of fighting for control in Jaffna. 1987: During Hindu–Muslim rioting in Meerut, India, 19 members of the Provincial Armed Constabulary allegedly massacred 42 Muslims and dumped their bodies in water canals.

Which famous people were born on 22 May?

Novak Djokovic, Serbian tennis player (1987); Maggie Q, American actress (1979); Shefali Shah, Indian actress (1973); Nedumudi Venu, Indian actor and screenwriter (died 2021) (1948).

Which day is observed on 22 May?

International Day for Biological Diversity; Abolition Day (Martinique); Aromanian National Day (marginal, celebration on May 23 is more common); Harvey Milk Day (California); International Day for Biological Diversity (International).