J K MITTAL Vs. KINGFISHER AIRLINES LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The complainant No.1, who is a practicing Advocate booked air tickets for travelling from Delhi to Bhubneswar and Bhubneswar to Delhi on 12.03.2008, on the website of opposite party No.1, Kingfisher Airlines Ltd. The complainant No.1 was issued one ticket on Flight No. IT-4608 from Delhi to Bhubneswar and the other ticket on Flight No. IT-4677 from Bhubneswar to Delhi. When the complainant reached the Airport at Terminal-1A of IGI Airport on 12.3.2008 and sought issue of the Boarding Pass of the Flight No. IT-4608, he was told that opposite party No.1 did not operate any flight from Delhi to Bhubneswar and he was directed to take flight No. DN 608 operated by opposite party No.2 Deccan Aviation Ltd., from Terminal-1B of the Airport. The complainant therefore, had to take a cab and reach Terminal No.1B to board flight No. DN 608. On return from Bhubneswar to Delhi, the complainant was issued Boarding Pass by opposite party No.2, for Flight No. DN 677, against the ticket sold and issued by opposite party No.1 for flight No.IT-4677.

(2.) The case of the complainants is that opposite party No.1 claimed to be a five-star airlines, rendering premier services to its flyers, whereas opposite parry No.2 was a Low Cost Airline and the fares on the flight of opposite party No.2 were far cheaper than the fares on the flights operated by opposite party No.1. According to the complainants, the opposite parties were indulging in unfair trade practices by booking tickets on the website of opposite party No.1, giving flight numbers of the said opposite party but making the passengers travel in the flights operated by opposite party No.2, a Low Cost Airline, thereby, deceiving the flyers by representing to them, that they would be travelling on Kingfisher Airlines, whereas in fact, they were to travel on Deccan Airways. The complainants have also given a comparison of the fares charged by opposite party No.1 with the fares charged by opposite party No.2 on the same sector, in order to show that by selling tickets for the flights operated by opposite party No.2 from its website and giving its own flight numbers on the tickets opposite party No.1 was charging a fare higher than which the opposite party No.2 would have charged from its customers. The complainants are therefore, seeking compensation to the extent of Rs.5.00 crores from opposite party No.1 and 2, besides a cease and desist order against the opposite party No.1 and opposite party No.2, restraining them from indulging in such unfair trade practices. Though, the complainants had also impleaded Director General of Civil Aviation and Union of India, Ministry of Civil Aviation as opposite parties No.3 and 4 and had also sought a direction to them to frame comprehensive guidelines or regulations regulating the flights operated by airlines to ensure that no airlines indulges into such a practice, the name of the said opposite parties were deleted from the array of the parties vide order dated 06.1.2015.

(3.) In its reply, the opposite party No. Kingfisher Airlines Ltd., took a preliminary objection that since the ticket by complainant No. was purchased for only Rs.9,000/-, this Commission lacks pecuniary jurisdiction to entertain the complaint. On merits, it was alleged that opposite party No.1 is an affiliate company of opposite party No.2 since 2007, when the UB Group acquired a substantial stake in opposite party No.2 and thereafter the Scheduled Airline Business Undertaking of opposite party No.1 was at the relevant time in the process of being merged with opposite party No.2. It was also stated in the reply that as a part of its business endeavour, opposite party No.1 offered the facility of booking certain flights operated by opposite party No.2 through opposite party No.1, for the routes of which opposite party No.1 did not operate and it is made explicitly clear at the time of booking that the flight would be operated by opposite party No.2. As regards fare of the flight, it is stated in the reply that the price of the ticket is related to the time when the booking is made and therefore, if for instance a passenger books tickets one month in advance, it would be cheaper than a ticket booked five days before the flight. It has been denied that the different fares are being charged by opposite party No.1 and 2 for the tickets booked at the same time for the same day travel.