"If the DGCA says that safety of passengers is paramount, the first thing they should do is ground the airline. Why haven't they?" aviation expert Mohan Ranganathan asks. The regulator, Mr Ranganathan alleges, is giving SpiceJet a long rope. "The audit finding quoted in the notice took place six months back," he says. "This means that the DGCA were aware that SpiceJet is operating under degraded safety margins and is having a string of maintenance issues. So why are they giving the airline more time?" Mr Kumar denies the allegations, saying they cannot "just ground flights overnight without any due processes" and that the situation is "not that alarming or earth-shaking". "The easiest option is to shut down everything but we can't do that, can we?"