Bombay HC allows Akasa Air to proceed with suit against former pilots

Rejecting the pilots' plea, the court stated that the cause of action, including the act of resignation, fell within its jurisdiction

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday ruled that Akasa Air can proceed with its suit in Mumbai against five pilots who had quit their duties without fulfilling the mandatory notice period requirements.  

A number of former Akasa Air pilots had said that the suit cannot be conducted before the Bombay High Court since the contracts were not executed or performed in Mumbai. 

The Bombay High Court rejected the pilots’ plea that the court did not hold jurisdiction to deal with contractual dispute as they were not executed in Mumbai. 

The airline declined to comment on the matter. 

The court held that the resignations, as a part of the cause of action, had occurred within the jurisdiction of the court.  

 

“I am inclined to grant leave as sending a resignation through email can be sufficient. It is ultimately the company that has to make a call on the resignation. The company may refuse to accept the resignation, accept it conditionally, or accept it at a future date. If these options are available to the employer and can be exercised when the email is received (in Mumbai), the cause of action has arisen within the court’s jurisdiction,” a bench led by Justice SM Modak held. 

The court will hear a plea for interim relief filed by the airline on 4 October. 

Five out of the six pilots who did not reside in Mumbai had objected to the jurisdiction for filing the suit in Mumbai. 

The remaining pilot did not raise an objection about the jurisdiction as the person resided in Mumbai. 

Senior advocate Janak Dwarkadas was appearing for Akasa Air whereas senior advocate Darius Khambata represented the pilots. 

Akasa is seeking significant compensation, reaching crores of rupees, from pilots who left the airline before completing a mandatory notice period. It has cited ‘operational losses’ and damage to the airline’s reputation due to the flight cancellations resulting from their premature departures.

The carrier’s pilots are required to serve a notice period of six months (for first officers) or one year (for captains).

Earlier, the carrier had told the Delhi High Court that it is in a ‘state of crisis’ and it ‘may shut down’ due to the resignations of 43 pilots to join rival airlines.

This had caused the airline to cancel 600 flights in August.

Akasa's market share slipped from 5.2 per cent in July to 4.2 per cent in August this year following cancellations of flights, according to DGCA data.