Subramanian Swamy slams Jaitely’s favouritism behind Jet Airways downfall

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Samikhsya Bureau

Senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on Thursday held Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha responsible for the downfall of the Jet Airways which has benefitted another private carrier SpiceJet.

Dr Swamy also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to look into the matter and charged the leaders with misusing their positions to damage the BJP’s reputation.

“I urge Namo to tell Jaitely and Jayant Sinha to lay off trying to parcel off Jet Airways to Spice Jet. It smells of favouritism and misuse of official position that will damage BJP’s reputation,” he tweeted.

On Wednesday,   Swamy has also shot off a letter to Union Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu and sought to draw his attention towards the issue.

“There is a serious effort going on by private airlines such as SpiceJet and Vistara to benefit from this dismemberment of Jet Airways.

“This is being supported by some of your colleagues and officers whom I can name in a private meeting with you,” he wrote.

The BJP Rajya Sabha MP has also suggested the Minister to merge the Jet Airways with the national carrier Air India, saying the amalgamation would not only ensure that air services are not restricted but also enable Air India to recover its former position.
Swamy urged the Minister to recommend the merger to the Cabinet to stop the plunder of national assets investment and the infrastructure of the Air India.

The Jet Airways has been facing a mountain debt of more than Rs 8,000 crore. On March 17, the airline has suspended all its flight operations ‘temporarily’ due to lack of funds. SBI-led consortium is now working on the selling of the airline’s stakes for its survival.

SpiceJet has gained the most among others from the closure of the Jet Airways.

(with inputs from UNI)