IndiGo’s star-studded but inactive board failed passengers

The non independent directors are managing director Rahul Bhatia, one of IndiGo’s founders and the person who shapes its commercial and operational direction, former SEBI chief Meleveetil Damodaran, senior corporate professional Anil Parashar, former WestJet CEO Gregg Albert Saretsky and former NITI Aayog chief Amitabh Kant.

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All five occupy positions that give them access to operational information, strategic decisions and regulatory exposure. Saretsky, in particular, has worked inside a large airline and is familiar with the consequences of fatigue noncompliance on scheduling stability, risk and passenger handling.

Kant and Damodaran have both held public roles involving accountability and oversight in government or regulatory institutions. Yet none of these directors raised any public or internal demand for a review of the rostering system before the breakdown occurred. The governance structure functioned without friction, but also without intervention.

Officials in the Ministry of Aviation and DGCA indicated that FDTL compliance concerns in the industry had been communicated to airlines, including IndiGo. Pilot unions and internal fatigue reporting had signalled growing problems.