‘Ground airlines on non complianc’: Supreme Court's stern warning as Centre fast-tracks new aviation rules

The Supreme Court said this while hearing a plea seeking an independent regulator which would ensure transparency and manage passenger protection.

Updated on: Aug 18, 2026, 18:05:52 IST

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The Supreme Court has reportedly issued a stern warning to airlines regarding strict adherence to regulatory requirements, even as the Union government promised it would expedite new aviation rules.

“If airlines are not complying, ground them,” a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said on Monday, ANI news agency reported. The apex court said this while hearing a plea filed by social activist S Laxminarayanan, which sought a robust and independent regulator, which would ensure transparency and manage passenger protection across the civil aviation sector.

Meanwhile, Centre informed the court that it had fast-tracked the framing of new aviation rules under the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, 2024, saying these would be finalised within three weeks.

While the government provided the draft rules to the bench for perusal in a sealed cover, it said some final discussions on the same were still underway. The Supreme Court bench, after examining the draft rules, noted that while a regulatory mechanism had been proposed, there was still no clarity on an effective regulator.

The plea had highlighted the unchecked increase in airfares, and the reducing of the free check-in baggage allowance for economy class passengers from 25 kg to 15 kg without any credible justification. The petition stated that this had converted “what was earlier part of the ticketed service into a new revenue stream.” It claimed that at present, no authority has the power to review or cap airfares or ancillary fees, allowing the airlines to exploit consumers through extra hidden charges and unpredictable prices.

Plea seeks regulatory guidelines on ‘unpredictable fluctuations’ in airfare

The plea, filed by the social activist, had also sought regulatory guidelines to control the “unpredictable fluctuations” in airfare and the ancillary charges imposed by private airlines in India, according to the ANI report. The petitioner's counsel argued that airlines were charging exorbitant fares, while referring to a statement made by the Union civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu in Parliament wherein he said the Centre could not impose a cap on airfares.

The petitioner's counsel questioned the “lack of willingness” on the part of authorities and the effectiveness of the existing mechanism. The bench, in a hearing on July 13, directed the Centre to place on record the rules framed under the new aviation law, a legislation which intended to modernise the country's civil aviation framework, ANI news agency reported. The Supreme Court had earlier termed the exorbitant increase in airfares by the airlines as “exploitation”, seeking a response from the Centre and DGCA on the plea.

It had asked the Centre to place the draft rules before the court in a sealed cover, irrespective of whether they had been laid before the Parliament. During the hearing on Monday, the SC bench accepted the Centre's request for additional time, listing the matter for further hearing on September 7.

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