District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (DCDRC), Jodhpur: While considering the instant complaint wherein the complainant sought compensation of Rs 2 Lakhs from Air India due to deficiency in their services for re-routing the complainant’s flight without giving him any prior information; the Bench of Dr Shyam Sunar Lata (President) and Afsana Khan (Member) found the airlines to be deficient in services and directed them pay total compensation of Rs 24,441 to the complainant for causing him physical and mental agony.
Background: Complainant had requested for a flight ticket from Chennai to Jodhpur. Air India booked his ticket in AI 569 from Chennai to Jodhpur which was via Mumbai.
On the scheduled day, the said flight departed from Chennai at 6:20 am and it was due to arrive in Mumbai at 8:00 am. However, the flight did not reach Mumbai on time as the flight’s path had been re-routed via Hyderabad.
By the time AI 569 landed in Mumbai, the complainant’s connecting flight from Mumbai to Jodhpur (AI 645) had already departed.
The complainant requested Air India staff for assistance in the matter, and book next Air India flight to Jodhpur but to no avail. Furthermore, the complainant demanded a refund for the ticket, but his request was denied.
Eventually, the complainant had to book an Indigo flight to complete the remainder of his journey.
The complainant alleged that being an advocate, he had an important meeting with a client and due to the deficiency in service by Air India, he could not reach for the said meeting on time.
The complainant further alleged that the airlines did not give him any prior information vis-a-vis re-routing of Flight no. AI 569 via Hyderabad. The complainant stated that due to discrepancies committed by Air India, the complainant had to spend additional money to book another flight in order to complete his journey.
Commission’s Assessment: Perusing the facts of the case and noting that the opposite party did not rebut the complainant’s allegation, the Commission relying on NCDRC precedents, found Air India to be deficient in service for not giving any prior information to the complainant vis-à-vis re-routing. The Commission further found the airlines liable for causing mental and physical agony to the complainant.
Hence, the Commission directed Air India to pay monetary compensation of Rs 15,000 for the mental agony caused; refund Mumbai-Jodhpur ticket amount of Rs 3421 and Rs 1200 spent on food along with Rs 5000 for costs of proceedings.
[Shreyash Ramdev v. Air India, CC No. 78/2022, decided on 13-12-2023]
Advocates who appeared in this case :
Complainant in person
For opposite parties- C.S. Bissa, Adv.
