Modi promised ease of air travel but gave 'cease of air travel', says Congress amid IndiGo crisis

New Delhi, Dec 6 (PTI) Taking a swipe at the government over the IndiGo flight disruptions, the Congress on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised ease of air travel but gave "cease of air travel" and asked whether Union Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu would take responsibility for the "unprecedented crisis".

The opposition party claimed that the ongoing IndiGo chaos was not an accident but the direct outcome of the BJP government's "relentless push to manufacture a duopoly in the sector".

With IndiGo flight disruptions impacting thousands of passengers, the Ministry of Civil Aviation on Saturday directed the airline to complete the ticket refund process for the cancelled flights by Sunday evening, as well as ensure that the baggage separated from the travellers is delivered in the next two days.

A day after the country's largest airline, IndiGo, cancelled more than 1,000 flights and caused disruptions for the fifth day on Saturday, the ministry said that any delay or non-compliance in refund processing will invite immediate regulatory action.

Addressing a press conference here, Congress leader Sasikanth Senthil said IndiGo's cancellation of flights has brought the nation's air travel to its knees.

"This crisis is not a natural breakdown; it is the predictable fallout of the BJP government that has been hell-bent on crushing competition, rewarding favourites, and reshaping an entire national industry to suit a tiny circle of corporate allies," Senthil said.

"The BJP government's reckless handling of aviation safety exposes the full extent of its negligence. After releasing the Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules on January 8, 2024, and after partially implementing them on July 1, 2025, the BJP government now shamelessly withdrew these critical safety protections in the middle of a sector-wide meltdown," the Tiruvallur MP said.

"This is not just irresponsible; it is outrageous. By scrapping rules specifically designed to prevent pilot fatigue, the BJP government has allegedly jeopardised passenger safety and thrown the well-being of cockpit crew into uncertainty," he said.

Instead of stabilising the situation, they have deepened it, proving once again that safety and accountability mean nothing to this administration when weighed against the convenience of their preferred corporations, Senthil said.

"The BJP government's obsession with creating monopolies is visible across India's infrastructure landscape. Why does only one corporate group repeatedly receive such large, strategically important assets?" he said.

It reflects a government that has weaponised policy, regulation, and public assets to build dominance for its chosen conglomerates, whether in aviation, telecom, ports, or infrastructure, Senthil claimed.

"What the country is now witnessing is the full-blown result of the BJP government's crony capitalism, a model that rewards political loyalty over merit, centralises power over markets, and destroys entire industries in the process," he said.

Senthil alleged that the crisis is a government-made disaster, crafted day by day through the government's policies, negligence, and blatant favouritism.

"It has crushed the aviation sector, endangered passengers, destabilised markets, and exposed the government's complete disregard for transparency, competition, and public interest," he said.

Posing questions to the government, Senthil asked why it has, in the last 11 years, allowed aviation to "shrink into a monopoly and duopoly instead of building a competitive, diverse sector".

"Why did the DGCA fail to ensure IndiGo complied with the FDTL rules released in January 2024 and partially implemented from July 2025 and fully on November 1? Did the government ever issue warnings or compliance notices to IndiGo, or was the airline protected from enforcement altogether?" he asked.

"Given the electoral bond disclosures showing massive purchases by InterGlobe group entities and its promoter, is the BJP's financial proximity to IndiGo the real reason behind this extraordinary leniency at the cost of passengers' safety?" Senthil questioned.

Will Naidu take responsibility for this unprecedented crisis, or continue hiding behind generic, meaningless statements while passengers remain stranded, he further asked.

On Saturday, more than 400 flights were cancelled at various airports.

IndiGo has been instructed by the government to set up dedicated passenger support and refund facilitation cells. PTI ASK PRK PRK