The Delhi High Court on Wednesday declined to entertain a public interest litigation (PIL) that sought directives for the Centre and IndiGo airline to compensate passengers four times the ticket price for cancellations made during November and December. These cancellations arose following the new Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms.
A Division Bench led by Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela stated that the court had already acknowledged this issue in a different pending PIL, permitting the petitioner to request intervention in that existing case.
“We do not see any reason as to why the concerns raised here cannot be taken up in the earlier petition. The jurisprudence developed by the Supreme Court and High Courts around PILs permits the court to expand the scope of a petition in public interest,” the Bench observed, reinforcing the importance of consolidating similar legal matters.
“We decline to entertain this petition with liberty to the petitioner to seek intervention in the pending petition. The writ petition stands disposed of,” the court affirmed while announcing its decision.
The PIL was filed by the Centre for Accountability and Systemic Change (CASC), represented by its president, Prof Vikram Singh. He argued that the recent cancellations by IndiGo sparked significant concern throughout the aviation sector. The petition noted that the abrupt disruptions and last-minute flight cancellations left numerous passengers stranded and caused tremendous inconvenience.
Advocate Virag Gupta, appearing for the petitioner, highlighted the chaos at various airports. He recounted instances of misdirected baggage, prolonged delays, poor communication from the airline regarding cancellations, and confusion surrounding refund and rebooking procedures.
The PIL additionally called for an independent investigation by a retired judge or the Lokpal to discern alleged negligence by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in managing these circumstances.
Previously, on December 10, the Delhi High Court expressed discontent with the Central Government’s failure to act promptly in response to the crisis caused by IndiGo’s flight cancellations. The court questioned why authorities permitted the situation to deteriorate, leaving lakhs of passengers stranded, especially as other airlines reportedly increased fares.
This earlier inquiry emerged amidst a separate PIL urging the Centre to aid and refund passengers impacted by the widespread cancellation of IndiGo flights.
Since December 2, IndiGo has faced mounting scrutiny from both governmental bodies and affected passengers. The airline cited regulatory amendments related to pilots’ flight duty time and rest protocols, asserting that these changes necessitated the cancellations.
The developing situation calls for proactive measures from both the government and airline industry stakeholders to mitigate the impact on passengers and restore confidence in air travel.
