Rahul Gandhi Blames IndiGo Crisis on Government’s ‘Monopoly Model’

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday criticised the government over the massive disruption in IndiGo’s flight operations, alleging that the ongoing “fiasco” is a direct outcome of what he called the Centre’s “monopoly model” in key sectors.

IndiGo, India’s largest airline, cancelled more than 550 flights on Thursday and over 400 on Friday, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded across major airports. Long queues, missed connections and last-minute travel scrambles marked one of the worst operational breakdowns the airline has faced in recent years.

Reacting to the crisis, Gandhi said ordinary citizens were bearing the brunt of poor policy choices.
“IndiGo fiasco is the cost of this Govt’s monopoly model. Once again, it’s ordinary Indians who pay the price — in delays, cancellations and helplessness,” he wrote in a post on X.

The Leader of the Opposition argued that India deserves fair competition across sectors, not “match-fixing monopolies” that concentrate power and reduce accountability. His remarks come amid growing concerns about the airline industry’s vulnerability, especially with major carriers dominating market share.

While the government has yet to formally respond to Gandhi’s criticism, aviation authorities are working with IndiGo to stabilise operations and address passenger grievances as cancellations continue to ripple through the travel network.