J&K Chief Minister Slams Delhi Airport Chaos After Flight Diversion

New Delhi: Late Saturday night, an IndiGo flight carrying Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was rerouted from Delhi to Jaipur, sparking a sharp rebuke from the political leader. Abdullah, visibly frustrated, criticized the operational disarray at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, where his flight was diverted after three hours in the air, leaving passengers stranded on the aircraft in Jaipur past midnight.

In a candid post on X, Abdullah described the situation at Delhi’s airport as a “bloody shit show,” apologizing for his blunt language but emphasizing his exasperation. He shared a selfie from the steps of the IndiGo plane at Jaipur airport, noting he had stepped off briefly for fresh air at 1 a.m. “I’ve no idea what time we will leave from here,” he wrote, highlighting the uncertainty faced by passengers.

The disruption comes amid ongoing challenges at IGI Airport, where Terminal 2 operations were recently halted for maintenance, forcing airlines like IndiGo and Akasa Air to shift flights to Terminal 3 and the newly upgraded Terminal 1. These changes have contributed to congestion and delays, exacerbating operational issues.

Abdullah later updated his X post, confirming he reached Delhi just after 3 a.m., underscoring the lengthy ordeal. Neither IndiGo nor Delhi airport authorities had issued an official statement on the incident at the time of reporting, leaving passengers without clarity on the cause of the diversion.