New Delhi, May 23 (IANS): The Delhi High Court on Monday sought the response of the Amarnath Shrine Board on a plea alleging loopholes in its helicopter ticketing system and "black marketing" by agents, thus creating huge inconvenience and problems to the pilgrims to the Himalayan cave shrine.

The Public Interest Litigation (PIL), filed through advocate Avadh Bihari Kaushik, contended that the plea was filed for the benefit of the old, ailing and disabled pilgrims from across the country going on Amarnath Yatra.

Issuing notice in the matter, a division bench of Acting Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Sachin Datta asked the shrine board to file an affidavit in the matter by May 31, in the next hearing.

The petitioner claimed that the online ticket system will be directed to the websites maintained by the helicopter companies which are hired by agents.

During the course of the hearing, the court asked why a transparent process in online booking for helicopter services are not being put in place like by the Shri Mata Vaishnodevi Shrine Board. In the plea, the petitioner stated that to help and assist the old, ailing, and disabled pilgrims undertaking Mata Vaishno Devi Yatra, its helicopter service's tickets were sold through authorised travel agents by quota system.

"However, as the said system due to inherent loopholes and scope for misuse, led to hording of tickets and its black-marketing by the unscrupulous dishonest and greedy agents, by forming a cartel with the hoteliers and therefore, the same had to be discontinued and all the tickets were made available through online process, which is a transparent process accessible to all and sundry," it read.