A plea raising concerns over a steep rise in airfares drew a sharp response from the Supreme Court Monday, with Justice Vikram Nath telling the counsel,
“Don't travel by air.” The exchange took place when counsel mentioned the issue of what was described as an increase of up to 700 per cent in airfares. The lawyer argued that air travel was an essential service and that such steep hikes amounted to a violation of Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law and equal protection of the laws. Justice Nath, however, declined to entertain the submission at that point. "Don't travel by air. Next case," he said. The exchange comes amid a wider legal and regulatory debate over the pricing practices of private airlines, particularly the sharp fluctuations in ticket prices during festivals, holidays and periods of high demand. The Supreme Court has previously taken note of the issue while hearing a public interest litigation filed by social activist S Laxminarayanan. The petition seeks an independent and effective regulatory mechanism to ensure transparency in airfare pricing and protect passengers from arbitrary hikes and additional charges. In January, a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta had flagged what it described as exploitative pricing during the Maha Kumbh and other festivals. Justice Nath had observed that the problem was not limited to one event, while the bench indicated that it would intervene to address unpredictable fare fluctuations. In May, the court again called for rationalisation of airfares, pointing to the difference in economy-class ticket prices for the same route on the same day. It cited an example of one airline charging Rs 8,000 while another charged Rs 18,000. The petition argues that airlines use opaque, algorithm-driven dynamic pricing systems that can cause fares to rise sharply within hours. It also challenges additional passenger charges and the reduction of complimentary check-in baggage allowance from 25 kg to 15 kg.
Centre Working On New Airfare Rules
The Centre informed the Supreme Court on October 16 that rules under the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, 2024, to regulate aspects of the aviation sector had been finalised and received administrative approval. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench that the rules would be published within two weeks.
The court directed the Centre to place the published rules before it on November 16, when the matter is scheduled to be heard next.
The larger question before the government and the court remains how to ensure fair pricing and passenger protection without undermining the commercial functioning of airlines.
