PIL in Supreme Court seeks probe into IndiGo’s ‘operational collapse’

In the wake of IndiGo Airlines’ unprecedented operational turmoil, a public interest litigation (PIL) has been filed before the Supreme Court of India, seeking urgent judicial intervention into what petitioners describe as a humanitarian crisis in India’s skies. The airline has reportedly cancelled over 1,000 flights in recent days, leaving thousands of passengers stranded and scrambling for answers.

Filed by the group ‘IndiGo All Passenger and Another’, through advocate Narendra Mishra, the plea paints a dramatic picture of chaos, asserting that the airline’s failures constitute a grave violation of citizens’ fundamental rights, including the right to life and dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution.

The petition details scenes at major airports that are almost cinematic in their severity: infants, senior citizens, and patients with urgent medical needs left without food, water, or rest areas, with emergency assistance reportedly sparse or absent. “The situation has transcended a mere contractual dispute between airline and consumer. It has become a matter of grave public injury,” the PIL states, describing the crisis as a national-level emergency.

IndiGo has attributed the disruptions to planning lapses during the rollout of Phase-II of the revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms for pilots. Yet, the petition contends that neither the airline nor the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) undertook adequate anticipatory oversight to prevent this spiralling chaos.

Adding to public outrage, the PIL highlighted that exorbitant fares — some surging past ₹50,000 on key routes — effectively “held the travelling public hostage,” undermining the very promise of affordable air travel in India.

The petition calls for the formation of a Special Bench to urgently hear the matter, and urges the Supreme Court to direct IndiGo to cease arbitrary cancellations, while providing free alternative travel arrangements, including seats on other airlines or even trains, for stranded passengers.

Further, the PIL seeks directions for the DGCA and the Union Civil Aviation Ministry to file a comprehensive status report, detailing the revised FDTL norms, monitoring mechanisms, and a clear plan for restoring services safely and efficiently.

Claiming that lakhs of citizens have been deprived of basic necessities amidst this aviation debacle, the petition asserts that only immediate judicial oversight can restore accountability and renew public confidence in India’s civil aviation framework.

With IANS inputs