A consumer commission in Srinagar has directed SpiceJet to refund the airfare and pay compensation amounting to over Rs 62,000 to an elderly couple after the airline allegedly denied them boarding on a Delhi-Srinagar flight two years ago, despite their having valid boarding passes, according to a report.
The order, passed on 9 June 2026, asked the airline to refund the ticket cost of Rs 10,078 and pay an additional Rs 52,000 in compensation to Ghulam Nabi Fafoo and his wife, Raja Begum, the The Indian Express reported.
According to the complaint, the couple was reportedly flying back to Srinagar on July 8 after completing the Hajj pilgrimage, on a SpiceJet flight booked by their son that was scheduled to depart Delhi at 6:45 p.m. and land in Srinagar by 8:20 p.m.
The couple said they had arrived at the airport well ahead of departure, completed check-in, handed over their luggage and collected their boarding passes before heading to the gate. However, when boarding began, they were turned away despite holding valid boarding passes, and airline staff allegedly gave no explanation for the denial, according to the complaint cited by IE.
Fafoo also alleged that other passengers, whom he described as “blue-eyed people,” were let onto the flight in their place, and that the airline cancelled their boarding passes, the report said. Their checked-in baggage was reportedly returned only after several hours, by which time they had missed every other flight to Srinagar that day and were left stranded overnight in Delhi.
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As a result, the couple had to book a costlier IndiGo flight the next morning at Rs 13,450 to complete their journey, according to the complaint.
The consumer commission bench, comprising president Farah Deeba and member Shabnum Munshi, ruled in the couple’s favour, holding SpiceJet responsible for both the financial loss and the distress caused.
“The opposite party (SpiceJet) is held liable not only for being deficient in service but also for adopting unfair trade practice towards the complainant,” the commission said in its order, as quoted by the Indian Express. The order also noted that the airline’s conduct had caused the complainant “immense mental pain, agony, harassment and financial loss.”
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