Politics · India Bureau
Supreme Court dismisses urgent plea on alleged 700% airfare spike
India's Supreme Court on Monday refused to urgently hear a petition challenging a reported 700 per cent increase in airfares, suggesting petitioners avoid air travel altogether. The dismissal came even as the court considers a separate petition seeking stricter regulation of civil aviation pricing and passenger protection measures.
LSN India ·
An advocate appearing before a bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and Aparesh Kumar Singh sought urgent listing of the plea, citing the dramatic spike in aviation fares. When the advocate contended that the fare increase amounted to a violation of Article 14 of the Constitution—which guarantees equality before law—the bench responded with a terse observation: "Don't travel by air."
The advocate countered that air travel constitutes an essential service, drawing a sharp response from the court, which nonetheless declined to accord urgent hearing status to the matter.
The dismissal comes as the Supreme Court separately examines a petition filed by social activist S Laxminarayanan, who has called for establishing a robust, independent regulator to oversee India's civil aviation sector. The activist's plea seeks regulatory guidelines to control unpredictable airfare fluctuations and ancillary charges levied by private airlines, alongside enhanced transparency and passenger protection mechanisms.
The parallel petitions reflect growing concerns about airline pricing practices in India. While the court has begun deliberating on Laxminarayanan's broader regulatory proposal, Monday's dismissal suggests the bench may favour market-based solutions over judicial intervention in fare-setting matters.