SpiceJet passengers stranded at Dubai airport after flight cancellations
Mumbai (PTI): Hundreds of SpiceJet passengers were stranded at the Dubai airport on Wednesday after some flights were cancelled due to to non-payment of dues by the airline to the Dubai airport authorities, according to a source.
A SpiceJet spokesperson on Thursday said few flights from Dubai to India were cancelled due to operational reasons on Wednesday but did not elaborate.
The source in the know said around 10 SpiceJet flights, which were to be operated to various Indian cities from Dubai, were cancelled due to non-payment of dues.
Hundreds of passengers were stranded at Dubai airport as a result of this, the source said.
"On July 31, 2024, a few flights from Dubai to India were cancelled due to operational reasons.
"The airline took immediate steps to mitigate the impact by rebooking affected passengers on subsequent flights and providing hotel accommodations," the airline spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added that all its scheduled flights from Dubai are now operating as planned.
Ajay Singh-promoted debt-ridden SpiceJet has been struggling for funds for quite some time now with the airline delaying salaries to its staff and payments to its vendors.
It has also reportedly not deposited the Employee Provident Fund Contributions to its 11,581 staff since January 2022.
Though the airline reported a standalone profit of Rs 119 crore in the January-March quarter of the previous fiscal, for the December quarter of the same year its losses stood at Rs 301.45 crore as against a profit of Rs 106.82 crore in FY23.
For full fiscal 2023-24, the airline posted a loss of Rs 409.43 crore against a loss of Rs 1,503 crore in FY23, the filing said.
On July 23, SpiceJet's board approved the airline's proposal to raise up to Rs 3,000 crore by issuing equity shares or other securities through the qualified institutional placement (QIP) process.
In January this year, SpiceJet received in-principle approval from the BSE for a fund infusion of Rs 2,242 crore but could mop up only Rs 1,060 crore under preferential issue in two tranches.
As on August 2 as many as 37 aircraft -- 18 Boeing 737 and 18 regional jets Q400 and one A340 -- were on ground, owing to multiple reasons, as per the aircraft fleet tracking website planespotter.net.
SpiceJet has a total of 59 planes in its fleet which include 32 Boeing737 and 24 Q400.
Besides, it also has one Airbus 340 and two Airbus A320, which are on wet-lease.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
LoP Ashoka targets CM govt over corruption, says being 'shameless' in public life not forgivable
Bengaluru (PTI): Targeting Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and the Congress government in Karnataka on corruption, BJP leader R Ashoka on Friday said, being foolish was forgivable, but being "shameless" in public life was not.
The Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly claimed that in just 30 months of its tenure, the Congress administration has broken every previous record on corruption-related controversies.
He was responding to Siddaramaiah's post on 'X' on Thursday hitting back at the BJP, stating that Upa Lokayukta Justice Veerappa's claims of "63 per cent corruption" were based on his report in November 2019, when BJP's B S Yediyurappa was the CM.
"But Ashoka, without understanding the Upa Lokayukta's statement properly, has ended up tying the BJP's own bells of sins onto our heads and has effectively shot himself in the foot," the CM had said, as he accused Ashoka of foolishness for trying to twist Veerappa's statement to target the current government.
Responding, Ashoka said, "it is one thing to be called foolish in politics, that can be forgiven."
"But in public life, especially in the Chief Minister's chair, one must never become shameless," Ashoka posted on 'X' on Friday addressing Siddaramaiah.
Noting that the CM himself had admitted on the floor of the Assembly that a Rs 87 crore scam took place in the Valmiki Development Corporation, he said that when a CM acknowledges such a massive irregularity inside the floor of the House, the natural expectation is immediate action and accountability.
"But instead of taking responsibility, you continue in office as if nothing has happened. What should the people of Karnataka call this, if not sheer shamelessness," he asked.
Pointing out that the CM's Economic Advisor and senior Congress MLA Basavaraja Rayareddy had publicly stated that under Congress rule, Karnataka has become No.1 in corruption, Ashoka said, "Yet, you still cling to the Chief Minister's chair without a moment of introspection. What should the people of Karnataka call this, if not sheer shamelessness."
Senior Congress MLA C R Patil had exposed the "money for House" racket in the Housing Department and even warned that the government would collapse if the details he has were made public, Ashoka said.
"Despite such serious allegations from within your own party (Congress), you neither initiated an inquiry nor acted against the concerned minister. What should the people of Karnataka call this, if not sheer shamelessness," Ashoka asked the CM.
Highlighting the "40 percent commission" allegation Congress made against the previous BJP government, the opposition leader said, the commission that the Siddaramaiah government appointed concluded that the accusation was baseless.
"After your own panel demolished your own claim, what moral right do you have to continue repeating that allegation. What should the people of Karnataka call this, if not sheer shamelessness," he asked.
For the last two and a half years, Karnataka has been 'drowning' in corruption, scandals, irregularities and allegations across departments. Ashoka said, "If I begin listing every case that emerged under your government, even 24 hours would not be enough."
"And the most tragic aspect of your administration is this: the unbearable pressure, corruption demands and administrative harassment under your government pushed several officers and contractors into extreme distress - including the suicide of Chandrasekharan which exposed the Valmiki Development Corporation scam - a sign of how deeply broken the system has become under your watch," he said.
Instead of fixing this hopeless environment, the government has tried to bury every complaint and silence every voice, he charged.
"Being foolish is forgivable, but being shameless in public life is definitely not."
"When your own ministers admit scams, when your own advisors certify Karnataka as No.1 in corruption, and when your own MLAs expose rackets inside your departments - clinging to power without accountability is not leadership. It is shamelessness in its purest form." PTI KSU
Earlier on Thursday Ashoka had demanded that the corruption case and allegations in the state against the Congress government be handed over to a CBI investigation, citing a reported statement by Upalokaykta Justice Veerappa alleging "63 per cent corruption", following which Siddaramaiah hit back at the BJP leader.
