Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar on Tuesday ordered Shaheen Air to pay monetary compensation to over 214 passengers who had been left stranded in China for a week, after their flight was abruptly cancelled following a payment dispute between the airline and the Civil Aviation Authority last month.
The passengers, who had been left stranded at the airport in Guangzhou since July 29, finally returned home via a Shaheen Air flight on Monday. They are said to have faced immense difficulties and a few of them had also reportedly fallen ill during the long wait at the airport.
A three-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by the chief justice, resumed hearing its suo motu notice on the matter today. Last week, the apex court had ordered the airline to ensure that all passengers were flown back home by Monday and compensated fairly.
During the course of the hearing, the chief justice remarked that the passengers had suffered immense mental strain and ordered the airline to monetarily compensate all affected passengers.
The chief executive of Shaheen Air, who was summoned before the bench on Tuesday, said the airline could pay Rs5 million as compensation, and asked the court to set the amount. To that, CJP Nisar remarked that the airline should pay Rs0.1m to every passenger who had undergone the ordeal.
The CEO responded that he would consult with the finance department, and blamed the CAA for the undue delay. He informed the bench that the airline had borne all passengers’ expenses.
The CJP told a court official to ascertain the amount of the compensation to be paid to the passengers, and to inform the court about it by August 20. He also instructed the CEO to inform the court about the airline’s dispute with the CAA in written form.
The court adjourned the next hearing till August 20.
Published in Daily Times, August 8th 2018.
