Overview

• A Supreme Court bench refused to hear lawyer Narendra Kumar Goswami’s PIL seeking an independent safety audit of Air India’s practices and maintenance procedures.
• The justices questioned the narrow focus on Air India, asking why other domestic and international carriers were not included in the proposed audit.
• The court recorded Goswami’s withdrawal of the petition so he could first present his safety recommendations to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and relevant authorities.
• The withdrawn plea had called for an ICAO-accredited international panel, led by a former Supreme Court judge, to conduct a comprehensive fleet audit and for the DGCA to establish robust operational safety mechanisms.
• Since the June 12 crash of Flight AI171—attributed to fuel control switch failures—the Tata Group has paid ex gratia compensation and set up a ₹500 crore AI-171 welfare trust for victims’ families.