CAG report indicts Praful Patel for decisions as civil aviation minister

There could be fresh trouble for heavy industries minister Praful Patel after the Comptroller and Auditor General’s report indicted him for his policy decisions when he headed the ministry of civil aviation.

The Centre for Public Interest Litigation, an NGO, has moved the Delhi high court seeking a central vigilance commission inquiry into aircraft acquisition deals of Air India, subsequent loss of market share for the airline and the ministry’s role when Patel was heading it.

A division bench of acting chief justice AK Sikri and justice Siddharth Mridul is likely to hear the PIL on Wednesday.
The PIL has made several allegations, saying the ministry’s mala fide decisions led the erstwhile Air India and Indian Airlines (the present Air India has been formed after the two’s merger) into heavy losses. It also alleged that the fleet expansion programme, seeking to add 111 aircraft, was “unnecessary” and approved without proper study.

The petition quoted the CAG audit report which found fault with the ministry’s decision to seek minimum equity infusion, and financing the aircraft order through debt.

It pointed to the airline abandoning profit-making routes and timings in favour of private airlines, leading to significant loss of market share.