Justice Dalveer Bhandari, in his order on a contempt petition moved by the AAI, said the Guild members should adhere to the court's February 16 order and at the same time, the AAI should not take action against traffic controllers till February 26 so that both parties got sufficient time to resolve the dispute amicably.

The order came after ATC counsel Harish Salve assured the court that "no unavoidable inconvenience" will be caused to passengers and that there will be "no deliberate delay" in flights by Guild members in all the 89 airports and connected air services in the country.

The court also sought an assurance from AAI chairman D V Gupta, who was in court, that no further punitive action would be taken for a week by AAI if the ATCsimmediately commenced normal activity.

The HC, on February 16, restrained the Guild from resorting to any agitation while issuing notice to the guild on an AAI contempt plea.

Expressing displeasure over the agitation, Justice Bhandari observed in the course of arguments, "This is not a contempt of this court only. ATC members should apologise to the nation as it involves the national and public interests at large."

AAI counsel V P Singh and Anjana Gosain brought to the court's notice that the Guild members were "not adhering" to its February 16 order as well as the May 26, 1995, order which directed them to perform their duty as per the rules and conditions of service.

However, ATC counsel Salve said the AAI, by resorting to drastic action like dismissals, had precipitated the matter and in such an atmosphere any conciliatory approach was not "possible".

He said the Guild members had assured him that if AAI took back its action against the traffic controllers, the Guild was ready to negotiatetowards resolution of the dispute.

AAI chairman Gupta, when asked by the court about the latest position, said ``They (the traffic controllers) have held the entire country to ransom and we have lost credibility at the international level."

He said "the dismissal orders have been issued when it became clear that there is no option left with us in the given circumstances."

The contempt plea by AAI was filed in a decade-old suit against the ATC Guild alleging that it was "violating" the May 26, 1995, order of the court.

The Guild resorted to a "go slow" agitation from February 2 demanding a hike in pay, introduction of duty allowance and enhancement of rating allowance, among other things.