Delhi HC orders DIAL to stop collecting ADF

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday ordered the operator of Delhi international airport to stop collecting airport development fee from passengers till the levy is cleared by the sector regulator. Following the order, GMR-led operator Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) has asked airlines to stop including ADF in fares with immediate effect.

"All airlines have been advised not to collect ADF of 200 from domestic passengers and 1,300 from international passengers at IGI Airport, until further communication," DIAL said in a press release.

Consumers Online Foundation, an NGO, had filed a petition in the court saying that without a finalisation of the fee, which is a mode of funding airport projects, DIAL cannot be permitted to collect it, especially since the Supreme Court had struck it down on April 26.

The high court has asked the NGO to file an appeal before the appellate tribunal of the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India within a week. The levy and collection of ADF will be decided within two weeks of the appeal being filed.

The Supreme Court had passed an order in April on the NGO's petition that the fee charged by operators of Delhi and Mumbai airports was illegal, as it was not approved by the regulator. In August 2009, the Delhi High Court had rejected the NGO's petition, ruling that private airport developers were free to charge ADF and that barring it would have damaging consequences for the PPP model.