The Supreme Court on Monday refused urgent listing of a plea alleging a nearly 700 per cent increase in airfares, with the bench telling the petitioner, “Don’t travel by air”. The exchange came as the court considers wider demands for transparent airline pricing and stronger passenger protection.
An advocate mentioned the matter for urgent listing before a bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and Aparesh Kumar Singh. The advocate said airfares had increased by 700 per cent. The bench responded that passengers should not travel by air. The advocate then argued that air travel had become an essential service and that the fare increase violated Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law.
The court’s response came against the backdrop of a separate petition seeking changes to the way India regulates civil aviation. That petition, filed by social activist S Laxminarayanan, seeks an independent aviation regulator, greater transparency in airfares and ancillary charges, and regulatory guidelines to control unpredictable price fluctuations by private airlines.
The case places airline ticket pricing within a broader question of access to transport. Air travel is particularly important for passengers travelling long distances, during emergencies, for work, and to cities with limited rail or road alternatives. However, the supplied court proceedings did not establish whether the alleged 700 per cent increase applied to a specific route, travel period, fare class or airline.
The Supreme Court has already been examining concerns over volatile airfares. During an earlier hearing in January, the court said it would intervene in the issue of unpredictable fare fluctuations and highlighted sharp increases during festivals. It described exorbitant fare hikes by airlines as exploitation and asked the Centre and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to file their responses.
The government has told the court that it is moving towards a new regulatory framework under the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, 2024, legislation intended to modernise India’s aviation sector. On August 17, the Centre said it had fast-tracked the framing of rules under the law. During a hearing on October 16, it informed the court that administrative approval had been granted to the rules and that they were likely to be published within two weeks.
The court had asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to place the published rules before it at the next hearing, scheduled for November 16. Those rules are expected to clarify the regulatory framework governing India’s aviation sector, although the supplied report does not specify whether they will directly impose controls on airfare levels or ancillary charges.
The court had sought responses from the Centre and other parties on Laxminarayanan’s petition in November last year. The continuing proceedings mean that the question before the court extends beyond one fare spike: it includes how pricing transparency, passenger rights and regulatory oversight should operate in a private airline market.
The immediate plea over the alleged 700 per cent increase was not urgently listed on Monday. The next significant procedural milestone is the November 16 hearing, when the Centre is expected to place the published rules under the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, 2024, before the Supreme Court.
