'How could airlines take advantage?': Delhi High Court pulls up Centre on airfare spike during IndiGo chaos
The Delhi High Court blasted the government and airlines for the exponential rise in airfares during the IndiGo flight cancellation crisis, which saw flight tickets of other air carriers soaring to as high as Rs 40,000 for a route which usually costs around Rs 5,000.
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday questioned the Centre and concerned authorities on how other airlines were allowed to charge fares as high as Rs 40,000 for tickets which usually cost around Rs 5,000 during the IndiGo flight cancellations chaos over the past few days, which affected lakhs of passengers across the country.
"If there were a crisis, how could other airlines be allowed to take advantage? How can fares jump to Rs 35,000–39,000? How could other carriers start charging these amounts? How can this happen?” a Delhi High Court Bench asked.
In response, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma, representing the government, submitted that the "statutory mechanism is totally in place" as he referred to relevant documents during the hearing.
The ASG informed the court that the Centre had been aiming to implement the FDTL for a long time, but IndiGo had sought extensions for the July and November phases before the single judge.
"This is the first time the Ministry has intervened. We have capped the fares this cap itself is a stringent regulatory action," he submitted.
'How could such a situation arise?': Delhi High Court
The bench then questioned the Centre on the action in connection with the flight disruptions and how is it ensuring that the airlines "behave responsibly".
"What action has been taken to compensate passengers? How are you ensuring that airline staff behave responsibly?” The court says the issue isn’t just inconvenience, it involves economic loss and systemic failures.
The court further asked as to how could a situation arises over time and what has been done to help the affected passengers.
"Why did such a situation even precipitate? What steps were taken to assist passengers,” the Bench said while ordering the Centre to explain the arrangements made to manage stranded travellers and prevent harassment at airports.
Also read: Competition Commission eyes probe into IndiGo after thousands of flights cancelled