The Supreme Court on Monday refused to take up a plea for an urgent hearing on the massive wave of IndiGo flight cancellations and delays. Over 4,500 flights have been cancelled since Tuesday last week, leaving thousands of passengers stuck across the country.
Meanwhile, The Delhi High Court has listed a plea for hearing on December 10, seeking directions to the Central Government to provide support and refunds to passengers affected by IndiGo’s flight cancellations.
‘We can’t run an Airline,’ Says CJI Surya Kant
A two-judge bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant heard the request. During the hearing, CJI Kant said the court understands how serious the situation is and how badly people have been affected, but said the court did not see an immediate need to intervene. “We understand that lakhs of people are stranded. Some may have urgent commitments and are unable to travel… but the government has already taken note of the situation. It appears timely steps are being taken. We don’t find any urgency at this stage,” he said.
He added that lakhs of passengers have been stuck at airports. Many of them have urgent work or health issues and need to travel urgently. But claimed that since the Government of India has already taken note of the crisis and started acting, the court does not see the need to jump in immediately. “We can’t run an airline. It’s a very serious issue. We understand that lakhs of people are stranded, including those with urgent needs. But the government has taken cognisance and timely action seems to have begun. Let us see what happens.”
According to the Indian Express, the plea was mentioned after a counsel told the court that flights were being cancelled without any prior information. The counsel informed the court that people were facing a real crisis as they had no idea their flights would suddenly be cancelled.
The mentioning of IndiGo crisis came after the Supreme Court issued a circular saying no oral mentions would be allowed in court from December 1. Despite that, the counsel still urged the bench to take up the matter urgently.
Petition filed in Delhi High court over IndiGo flight chaos
A public interest petition was filed in the Delhi High Court asking for proper ground help and refunds for passengers who have been stuck because of the ongoing IndiGo flight crisis. The petition was brought up on Monday before a bench led by Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela.
While mentioning the case, the lawyer told the court that the scenes at many airports are “inhuman.” He said passengers have been left stranded for hours, with no clear information and no refunds for flights that were suddenly cancelled. The plea asked the court to order IndiGo to provide ground support.
The division bench said it will take up the matter on Wednesday. However, the judges also added that the government has already issued some directions regarding the situation. Later, the bench agreed to list the plea mid-week, saying, “It will be listed on Wednesday.”