The details of the PIL against airlines

This PIL was filed when after the announcement of the extention of the nationwide lockdown by the Primwe Minister on 14th April, a number of airlines said that they would not refund the fare amount of cancelled tickets, in exchange offered the passengers to reschedule their booking after the restrictions on air travel are lifted. The petition has claimed that providing a credit shell of upto a year instead of the refund violates the guidelines of the DCGA issued in 2008. It also adds that the guidelines of 2008 DCGA state that accepting the credit shell in exchange of the refund is a choice of the traveller and cannot be enforced as mandatory by the airlines

PIL also challenges the Aviation Ministry

The petition has further challenged the Office Memorandum issued on 16th April, by the Ministry of Civil Avaition. The petitioner has added in the PIL, the memorandum directs the airlines to refund the full amount of the tickets that had been booked by the passengers during the first lockdown, without any cancellation fees. PIL calls the memorandum "ambiguous and devoid of logic" as it leaves a large number of passengers who had booked the tickets before the firstlockdown, in a lurch. The petition also states that the issued memorandum contradicts the 2008 DCGA guidelines by allowing the airlines to issue the credit shell as a mandatory on the passengers.

When will aviation services resume?

After a number of airlines said that they would resume they're services by 4th May, Civil Aviation Minister, Hardeep Singh Puri has indicatd through a tweet that the flight services in India will only resume after the Government has clarified that COVID-19 poses no threat to the people, specially air travellers. He has also added that the airlines that had started booking tickets to stop doing so and only to reopen when they are instructed.