SC issues notice to Centre on plea seeking full refund of flight tickets booked before lockdown
A three-judge bench asked the Ministry of Civil Aviation to hold discussions with airlines and reply within three weeks.
The Supreme Court on Friday issued a notice to the Centre to reply to a petition seeking full refund of air tickets that had to be cancelled amid the nationwide lockdown imposed to fight the coronavirus pandemic, Live Law reported. A bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, SK Kaul and MR Shah asked the Ministry of Civil Aviation to hold discussions with the airlines and reply within three weeks.
The top court was hearing a petition by the Pravasi Legal Cell, a not-for-profit organisation. The court suggested to the Centre that payment for the tickets can be adjusted as credits for fliers that they can use to book tickets over the next two years, NDTV reported.
Private carrier SpiceJet opposed the plea. “Nowhere in the world are the airlines refunding the complete fare,” the airline argued. “We would like to sit and discuss with the civil aviation ministry and come up with a solution.”
Advocate Harish Salve, representing the airline, said that globally, the aviation sector has suffered losses of $60 billion (Rs 4.54 lakh crore) due to lockdowns imposed to limit the spread of the coronavirus. “About 49% of the flying cost is fixed,” he argued. “There is zero revenue to the airlines.”
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, told the court that Indians stranded outside the country have been brought back under the Vande Bharat scheme, but the petitioner had filed the plea after travel from abroad was banned. In response, the court said only the question of full refund of tickets was being discussed.
“It is my personal view...money should be refunded,” Mehta said following the court’s rebuke. The Supreme Court will hold the next hearing after three weeks.
The Narendra Modi-led government banned both domestic and international air travel in March for an indefinite period. Limited domestic travel was restarted on May 25, with a low number of flights.