Mohali, April 4 -- The consumer disputes redressal commission of Mohali has pulled up MakeMyTrip and Thai Airways for making a Chandigarh resident wait nearly two years for a ticket refund after the airline rescheduled his flight. The order was pronounced by a bench of president S.K. Aggarwal member Paramjeet Kaur and member Lt Col Jasbir Singh Bath. The Commission passed the order on the complaint of a resident of Sector 38-West, who booked two Delhi-Bangkok-Sydney tickets for January 26, 2022, through MakeMyTrip for Rs.1.8 Lakh . The bench noted that Thai Airways later shifted the Delhi-Bangkok flight to January 27 making it impossible for the passengers to board the connecting flight to Sydney on the same day. Despite this, neither the airline nor MakeMyTrip arranged an alternative flight or processed a timely refund. Singh approached MakeMyTrip several times and even served a legal notice, but the refund was not issued. MakeMyTrip argued before the commission that it was only a facilitator and not liable for schedule changes, while Thai Airways claimed that the delay occurred because the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) withdrew permission for the January 26 flight. The airline further stated that it refunded the amount to MakeMyTrip on January 2, 2023, shortly after receiving the cancellation request. However, the commission held that both entities remained accountable for the passenger receiving his refund only on December 19, 2023, almost two years after he paid for the tickets. The bench held that the operational issues cited by the airline did not absolve it of responsibility, and MakeMyTrip could not distance itself merely by calling itself an intermediary. The delay, the commission held, amounted to deficiency in service and unfair trade practice. Rejecting MakeMyTrip's objection to territorial jurisdiction, the commission observed that the payment was made from Chandigarh, giving it the authority to hear the complaint. The commission directed MakeMyTrip and Thai Airways to pay 9% interest on the ticket amount from December 16, 2021, to December 19, 2023. It also ordered them to pay Rs.30,000 as compensation for mental agony, harassment and litigation costs, holding them jointly and severally liable....