IndiGo crisis: A Bengaluru woman took to LinkedIn to lash out at IndiGo after her siblings and relatives were unable to attend her father’s funeral because of the airline’s ongoing cancellations, now stretching into the second week. Manjari Ranasaria, in a post on LinkedIn, said that IndiGo could keep its “(non) apology” and “burn” it.
‘Sobbing, feeling helpless’
“My father passed on yesterday. Most of my siblings and relatives from out of town couldn’t be there,” Ranasaria said on LinkedIn.
Ranasaria said the family spent the day receiving emotional calls from relatives who felt “helpless” because they couldn’t say goodbye to someone who meant so much to them.
She added, “We fielded calls where each one of them was sobbing, feeling helpless for not being able to say farewell and pay their final respects to the person who was an important part of their lives.”
“IndiGo, you can take your (non) apology and burn it,” she lashed out at the airline.
Ranasaria further said, “And to every system that allowed this to happen, I just want to say that the people of this country deserve better.”
Over 70 IndiGo flights cancelled today
Her post came in response to IndiGo’s apology amid the fiasco that is in its ninth day. On December 10, IndiGo has so far cancelled over 70 flights across Bengaluru, Goa and Ahmedabad airports.
Since last Tuesday, more than 4,600 IndiGo flights have been cancelled. It all began on December 2 with over 150 cancellations, followed by nearly 200 on December 3. The cancellations rose sharply on December 4 with more than 300 flights affected, before surging to around 1,600 cancellations on December 5.
The crisis remained severe over the next few days, with approximately 850 flights cancelled on December 6, around 650 on December 7, and over 500 on December 8. On December 9, the airline reported more than 400 additional cancellations, pushing the total well past 4,600.
‘How can fares hit Rs 39k?’ – Delhi HC asks Centre
The Delhi High Court has pulled up the Centre over the inconvenience faced by air travellers amid the ongoing crisis at IndiGo. The bench questioned why airfares had spiked to Rs 35,000-39,000 and sought what urgent measures were taken to support stranded passengers. “Why did such a situation even precipitate? What steps were taken to assist passengers?” the bench asked.
According to Live Law, Justice Tushar Rao Gedela questioned how other airlines were allowed to “take advantage” of the crisis by inflating the airfares. He further asked, “How can it go to 35-39k? How could other airlines start charging? How can it happen?”
The additional solicitor general informed the court that the government had issued a show-cause notice to IndiGo, and the airline had responded with a “profuse apology”. He added that the phased rollout of the Flight Duty Time Limit (FDTL) rules had been pushed back multiple times since early 2024 after IndiGo repeatedly sought extensions, offering reassurances before the single judge.
“If they failed, what action did you take? You allowed the situation to reach this point,” the bench said.