New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday held the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA), which regulates aeronautical charges, can file an appeal against the orders of the Telecommunications Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT).
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud and Justice J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said the appeals filed by AERA against a TDSAT order, which held that the authority cannot impose tariffs on ground and cargo handling services, were maintainable.
AERA, the top court said, has a statutory duty to regulate tariffs upon consideration of multiple factors to ensure that airports are run in an economically viable manner without compromising on the interests of the public.
"When AERA determines the tariff for aeronautical services in terms of Section 13(1)(a) of the AERA Act, it is acting as a regulator and an interested party. It is interested not in a personal capacity. Its interest lies in ensuring that the concerns of public interest... are duly preserved. Thus, AERA is a necessary party in the appeal against its tariff order before TDSAT and it must be impleaded as a respondent," directed the bench.
The top court said the AERA can be impleaded as a respondent in an appeal against its order even if the provisions of the statute do not provide for it. This power can be read by necessary implication based on the role conferred on the Authority by the statute, it said.
TDSAT in its order had held that AERA lacks authority for imposition of tariffs on services such as ground and cargo handling. The tribunal had previously held that ground and cargo handling can be classified into "non-aeronautical services" under the AERA Act, 2008.
The TDSAT's order had come on January 13, 2023, on a plea filed by Delhi International Airport Ltd and Mumbai International Airport Ltd., challenging communications by AERA on the issue of tariff. The top court directed its Registry to list the matter before the regular bench for adjudication of the appeals on merits.
