IndiGo crisis: Why situation precipitated, Delhi High Court asks Centre; flags loss to economy

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday questioned the Central government as to why the situation that led to the cancellation of a number of flights by IndiGo precipitated, and termed it a “crisis”.

The high court said besides trouble and harassment caused to the stranded passengers, the question is of the losses caused to the country's economy.

A bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela also asked how other airlines could take advantage of the crisis situation and charge hefty sums for tickets from the passengers.

“The ticket which was available for Rs 5,000, the prices went up to Rs 30,000 to Rs 35,000. If there was a crisis, how could other airlines be permitted to take advantage? How can it (ticket price) go up to Rs 35,000 and Rs 39,000? How could other airlines start charging," asked the bench, which heard the matter for more than one-and-a-half hours.

The bench directed that by January 22, the next date of hearing, if the inquiry initiated by a committee is complete, its report should be submitted to the court in a sealed cover.

"We appreciate the steps taken by the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the DGCA but what bothers us is how such a situation was allowed to precipitate, leading to stranding of lakhs of passengers at airports across the country.

"This has not only caused trouble to the passengers but also affected the economy of the country as in the present day, fast movement of passengers is an important aspect to keep the economy moving," the bench said.

The court was informed by the counsel for the Centre and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that the statutory mechanism was totally in place and a show-cause notice was issued to Indigo, which apologised profusely.

The government’s counsel also said the crisis precipitated on account of various non-compliances of the guidelines issued by the authorities from time to time, including flight duty hours of the crew members.

It said the unprecedented surge has been controlled and capped, which was never done before.

The court was hearing a public interest litigation seeking directions to the Centre to provide support and refunds to passengers affected by the cancellation of hundreds of flights by IndiGo.

During the hearing, the bench expressed dissatisfaction over the manner in which the petition was filed without any research and documentation.

The counsel for IndiGo informed the court that the crisis occurred on account of multitude of factors, including unforeseen issues.

The court directed the airline to make arrangements for compensating the stranded passengers, not only for cancellation of flights but also for other troubles caused to them.

“Since a committee has already been constituted where IndiGo will have an opportunity to put forth its case, we refrain from making any observation as to the reason for disruptions of flight operations of respondent No. 3 (airline).

“While we have taken cognisance of the issue in public interest, we make it clear that the observations are aimed to ensure that best public interest is served both by the government and the airline (IndiGo)," the bench said.

The court also directed the authorities to ensure that the situation normalises soon and all airlines employ adequate number of pilots.