SC rejects plea seeking probe, refunds over IndiGo flight chaos
The Supreme Court declined to hear a public interest litigation concerning mass IndiGo flight cancellations. The court directed the petitioner to approach the Delhi High Court, which is already addressing the issue. Thousands of passengers were st...
By ET Bureau |
New Delhi: Terming the mass cancellation of Indigo flights last month as "grave and public" concern, the Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a PIL seeking a judicial probe into delays that left thousands stranded at airports and refund of tickets issue.
A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant while refusing to entertain the petition asked Narendra Mishra, the petitioner, to move the Delhi High Court which is already hearing the case and the Director General of Civil Aviation has formed a committee to investigate the lapse which left thousands stranded in airports.
The top court said it did not want a parallel proceeding as that may dissuade the HC from hearing the case.
Asks petitioner to approach Delhi HC, which is already hearing the case If all grievances are not redressed, then nothing stops the petitioner or any other public-spirited individual to approach the SC, the CJI said, while noting that all the contentions raised by Mishra were already pending before the HC.
Last week, the HC had criticised the Union government and DCGA for failing to prevent the crisis and asked Indigo to take steps for paying monetary compensation to the affected passengers, while also questioning how airfares on other carriers surged to unprecedented levels following the mass cancellation of IndiGo flights.
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It had also asked why the government did not implement the guidelines on pilot working hours on time and why it acted when the crisis had erupted. "You allowed the situation to precipitate, and only then did you take action," the court said. "Why did you allow all this to happen? What action have you taken to provide help to people and compensate them? It's not just a question of individual passengers stuck at the airport. The question is also about loss to the economy. How could other airlines take advantage of the situation and start charging '40,000 or more for tickets from passengers," it said.
The HC asked the Centre to ensure that the situation returns to normal at the earliest, without compromising passenger safety. Further, the court called for taking suitable measures to ensure that all airlines employ an adequate number of pilots.
IndiGo cancelled more than 5,000 flights last week due to a severe pilot shortage, following enforcement of the new flying rules.
