IndiGo, Air India oppose Adani’s airline entry
IndiGo and Air India have publicly opposed the Adani Group's potential entry into the airline industry, citing concerns over conflicts of interest and market consolidation. The airlines argue that allowing an airport operator to also own an airline would create an unfair competitive advantage and harm consumers.
Why it matters
This conflict highlights the risks of vertical integration in critical infrastructure sectors and could influence future government policy on cross-ownership regulations.
IndiGo and Air India have opposed the Adani Group’s reported interest in entering the airline business, raising concerns over conflicts of interest and the potential erosion of competition, as the conglomerate is learnt to have approached the government to remove cross-ownership restrictions that currently limit airline ownership in airports and vice versa.
IndiGo Managing Director Rahul Bhatia on Wednesday (July 22, 2026) in an analyst’s call to discuss the quarterly results said in a response to a query on the issue that there was “no global precedent because it would typically raise a massive conflict of interest, and over a period of time it would against the interest of consumers.”
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