Flight Disruptions
How can airlines benefit from IndiGo crisis by hiking prices, HC asks govt
This story was originally published at 14:45 IST on 10 December 2025
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--HC to IndiGo:Strictly adhere to rules on paying compensation to passengers
--CONTEXT: HC on PIL for probe into IndiGo flight cancellations, delays
--HC in IndiGo case: Govt to ensure situation comes to normal at earliest
NEW DELHI – Hearing a public interest litigation seeking a judicial probe into delays and cancellation of Interglobe Aviation Ltd.-operated IndiGo flights, the Delhi High Court Wednesday questioned the government how other airlines could take advantage of the situation and start charging INR 40,000 or more for tickets from passengers. "You allowed the situation to precipitate and only then did you take action. Why did you allow all this to happen?" the court asked. "It's not just a question of individual passengers stuck at the airport. The question is also about loss to the economy. What action have you taken to provide help to people and compensate them?" the high court asked.
A bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela questioned the government on the action it had taken to ensure that the employees of IndiGo airline behaved properly with passengers. It asked why the government had not implemented the guidelines on pilot working hours on time. The court said that the government had undertaken actions only once the crisis had erupted and asked why such a crisis had erupted in the first place.
The court directed IndiGo to strictly adhere to provisions on payment of compensation to passengers. If there are any other provisions for payment of damages to passengers, those should also be ensured by IndiGo and other respondents, the court said. It asked the government to ensure that the situation returned to normal at the earliest, without compromising the safety of passengers. It also sought that appropriate measures be taken so that all airlines employ an adequate number of pilots.
The high court asked the Directorate General of Civil Aviation what action it had taken if IndiGo did not recruit an appropriate number of pilots. If a pilot is supposed to carry out two landings in a night and is is doing six, he is compromising people's safety, the court observed. The court noted that a show-cause notice had been issued by the aviation regulator to IndiGo on the issue. It also noted various steps taken by the government such as relaxing leaves available to pilots, exemptions to IndiGo on Flight Duty Time Limitations and putting a cap on airfares. The court said that what bothered it was how a situation was allowed to precipitate, leaving lakhs of passengers unattended at airports.
On IndiGo's argument that for the last 10 years, it was the best-awarded airline not only in India but also in South Asia, and had over 65% market share because of its service, the high court said, "That would not absolve you of the present fiasco". The high court asked the aviation regulator to place the report of the enquiry against IndiGo, if it was completed by the next date of hearing on Jan. 22. The high court asked the parties to file detailed affidavits in the case.
The high court was hearing a public interest litigation by two practising lawyers, Akhil Rana and Utkarsh Sharma, raising concern about the recent disruptions in the services provided by IndiGo on account of cancellation and delays of a large numbers of flights. IndiGo saw an unprecedented level of flight cancellations last week due to crew shortage, following enforcement of the new flight duty time limitation rules. These flight cancellations led to several passengers being stranded at airports across the country.
At 1415 IST, shares of InterGlobe Aviation Ltd. were down 3.1% at INR 4,814.00 on the National Stock Exchange. End
IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT
Reported by Surya Tripathi
Edited by Avishek Dutta
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