Rahul Gandhi slams Centre's 'monopoly model' for IndiGo disruptions

Rahul Gandhi blamed the Centre's 'monopoly model' for IndiGo's widespread flight cancellations. The Opposition, including Priyanka Chaturvedi, plans to raise the issue in Parliament, citing passenger hardship and demanding government intervention.

Opposition Slams 'Monopoly Model'

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Friday criticised the Centre over IndiGo experiencing operational disruptions and flight cancellations, attributing the issues to a "monopoly model".

In an X post, Rahul Gandhi attributed the recent disruptions in the airlines to a monopoly in the aviation sector, demanding "fair competition" in the market. "IndiGo fiasco is the cost of this Govt's monopoly model. Once again, it's ordinary Indians who pay the price - in delays, cancellations and helplessness. India deserves fair competition in every sector, not match-fixing monopolies," the Congress MP wrote. IndiGo has seen a sharp rise in cancellations, reaching approximately 170-200 flights per day, significantly higher than usual, prompting concerns over passenger safety and convenience. The flight disruptions have sparked a political row, and the issue may be raised in Parliament by the Opposition.

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Seeks Minister's Statement

Earlier today, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi moved a notice under Rule 180 in the Rajya Sabha, requesting the Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu to make a statement on the disruption of IndiGo's operations, which has been causing severe inconvenience to passengers across the country. She cited passenger safety and convenience, calling it a matter of "urgent public importance."

She wrote, "The widespread disruption in IndiGo Airlines' operations on Wednesday, resulting in severe delays of up to seven hours and cancellation of more than 70 flights nationwide, including major airports such as Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad, was caused by an acute shortage of crew and other operational issues. The situation led to significant hardship for passengers, with several key domestic routes and international services such as the Mumbai-Maldives flight severely affected during peak hours."

"The matter is of urgent public importance as thousands of passengers were stranded, normal airport functioning was affected, and recurrent large-scale disruptions in airline services highlight a need for immediate government intervention, accountability measures, and safeguards to prevent future occurrences. I request that the Minister make a statement on the matter at an early date," she added.

DGCA Cites FDTL Norms, Crew Planning Gaps

Meanwhile, IndiGo has sought temporary operational exemptions from certain Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) provisions for its A320 fleet until February 10, 2026, and assured that operational stability will be restored by that date, the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said in a statement. During the review meeting on Thursday, the DGCA found that IndiGo's operational breakdowns stemmed from transitional challenges in implementing Phase 2 of the revised FDTL norms, crew-planning gaps, and winter-season constraints. The revised fatigue-management rules, enforced following court directions, came into effect in two stages, July 1 and November 1, 2025. (ANI)

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