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IndiGo turmoil sparks political storm; Congress blames government, CPM seeks JPC probe

NEW DELHI: Amid widespread disruptions in IndiGos flight operations , political criticism intensified on Saturday, with the Congress calling the turmoil a government-made disaster born of faulty policies, negligence, and favoritism. Meanwhile, CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking a Joint Parliamentary Committee or judicial inquiry into what he described as an unprecedented crisis in the civil aviation sector and a sharp spike in airfares. The Congress claimed that the ongoing IndiGo chaos was not an accident but the direct outcome of the BJP government's elentless push to manufacture a duopoly in the sector. Addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters, Congress MP Sasikanth Senthil said IndiGo's cancellation of flights had brought the nation's air travel to its knees. 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rules on January 8, 2024, and partially implementing them on July 1, 2025, the BJP government has now shamelessly withdrawn these critical safety protections in the middle of a sector-wide meltdown, he said. This is not just irresponsible; it is outrageous. By scrapping rules specifically designed to prevent pilot fatigue, the BJP government has allegedly jeopardized passenger safety and thrown the well-being of cockpit crew into uncertainty, he added. 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, partially implemented from July 2025, and fully enforced on November 1? Did the government ever issue warnings or compliance notices to IndiGo, or was the airline protected from enforcement altogether? 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? he asked. Government clamps down on surge in airfares amid IndiGo disruption; domestic fares capped at Rs 18,000 Meanwhile, Brittas said the scale, speed, and severity of the disruption following the enforcement of revised FDTL norms by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had exposed deep structural failures in regulatory preparedness, leaving oversight and consumer protection weak and ordinary passengers dangerously vulnerable. What transformed this operational failure into a national scandal is the manner in which the disruption was converted into a profiteering opportunity. Domestic airfares skyrocketed to extortionate levels that defy logic, demand, or fairness. Emergency travelers, students, workers, and families in distress were forced to either abandon essential travel or pay ransom-like sums for basic connectivity, Brittass letter said. A safety rule meant to protect pilots and passengers was sabotaged into chaos, used to unleash ransom-level airfares, and diluted after collapse. This crisis is not accidental - it is an organised loot enabled by the Government. A duopoly-driven exploitation with regulators and pic.twitter.com/jbDTkybvt5 John Brittas (@JohnBrittas) December 6, 2025 Explained | Why DGCAs new pilot fatigue rules disrupted IndiGo operations