Delhi High Court Questions Centre Over IndiGo Flight Disruptions, Flags Damage to Economy

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has pulled up the Union government over the circumstances that led to the large-scale cancellation of flights by IndiGo, calling the situation a “crisis” and stating that the disruptions had not only harassed passengers but also caused serious damage to the national economy.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela questioned how such a situation was allowed to develop in the first place, leading to lakhs of passengers being stranded at airports across the country. The court said that in today’s economy, the fast movement of passengers is essential to keep economic activity going, and any major disruption directly impacts the country’s economic health.

The Bench also raised serious concerns over the steep increase in airfares during the crisis. It noted that tickets priced at around 5,000 had shot up to 30,000–35,000 and even 39,000 in some cases. The court asked how other airlines were allowed to take advantage of the crisis to charge such high prices from passengers.

The High Court directed that if the inquiry initiated by the committee into the disruptions is completed by the next hearing on January 22, its report should be submitted to the court in a sealed cover.

During the hearing, the Centre and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) informed the court that a statutory mechanism was in place and that a show-cause notice had been issued to IndiGo, following which the airline had apologised. The government’s counsel said the crisis had occurred due to multiple violations of existing guidelines, including failure to follow flight duty hour norms for crew members. The Centre also claimed that the unprecedented surge in disruptions had now been controlled and capped, a step that had never been taken earlier.

The court was hearing a public interest litigation seeking directions to the Centre to extend support and provide refunds to passengers affected by the cancellation of hundreds of IndiGo flights. IndiGo, in its submission before the court, claimed that the crisis had resulted from a combination of several unforeseen factors. The High Court, however, directed the airline to make arrangements to compensate stranded passengers not only for cancelled flights but also for the other hardships they had suffered.

The Bench clarified that since a committee had already been formed, where IndiGo would get an opportunity to present its case, it would refrain from making any final observations on the reasons behind the operational breakdown at this stage. At the same time, it stressed that the court had taken up the matter purely in public interest and that its observations were meant to ensure that both the government and the airline act in the best interest of the public.

The court also instructed the authorities to ensure that the overall situation normalises at the earliest and that all airlines deploy an adequate number of pilots to prevent such disruptions from recurring.