Blame government, not just IndiGo for aviation crisis: CPI(M)’s A. A. Rahim

Communist Party of India-Marxist [CPI(M)] leader AA Rahim on Wednesday, December 10, 2025, blamed the Union Government for the recent IndiGo crisis, claiming that it was the direct result of unchecked privatization and deregulation that turned India’s aviation sector into a duopoly.

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Mr Rahim urged the government not to dilute the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) rules to ensure airline compliance.

Raising the issue during the Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Mr. Rahim said the crisis did not belong to IndiGo alone. “The sole culprit behind this major crisis is the Union Government. This is the direct result of the government’s neo-liberal economic policies, privatization and deregulation of the Indian aviation sector,” he said.

Pointing to market concentration, Mr. Rahim said IndiGo currently operates 65.6% of all flights while Air India operates 25.7%. “More than 90% of India’s aviation industry is controlled by just two bosses, IndiGo and Tata,” he said.

CPI(M) leader Mr. Rahim rejected the government’s promise that privatization of Air India would transform the airline.

Rahim said, “The situation is extremely bad in terms of safety, service quality and aircraft quality. The government has created a misconception that the public sector is useless and the private sector can work miracles.” He accused Air India of exploiting the IndiGo crisis. “What is Tata’s Air India doing during this so-called IndiGo crisis? It is profiting from people’s distress,” he alleged.

Citing his own experience, Mr. Rahim said that despite a government order last Friday (December 5, 2025) capping air tickets at ₹18,000 for routes over 1,500 km, on Wednesday morning, December 10, he found a Delhi-Thiruvananthapuram economy class ticket priced at ₹64,783 for same-day travel. “What control does the government have? The government has no control over private carriers,” he said.

Mr. Rahim warned against diluting the FDTL rules or granting exceptions to IndiGo. He called for strong regulatory mechanisms to control airfares and ensure passenger safety in a dual market.