NATIONAL CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION

NEW DELHI

 

REVISION  PETITION  NO.  167   OF  2002

(From the order dated  16.10.2001   in  Appeal  Nos.49/S.C./2001 & 454/2001

of the State Commission,  Uttar Pradesh)

 

Union of India & Ors.                                                    .           …  Petitioners

  Vs.

K.K. Shukla & Ors.                                                                  …   Respondents

 

BEFORE:

            HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE D.P. WADHWA,

                                                            PRESIDENT

            HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE J.K. MEHRA, MEMBER.

            MRS. RAJYALAKSHMI RAO, MEMBER.

            MR. B.K. TAIMNI, MEMBER.

 

 

(i) Railways - train occupied by ticketless rallyist-  senior citizens with

             reserved tickets - not providing berths - deficiency in service

 

(ii) Railway Police -  if duty to project bona fide passengers or to give

protection  to  rowdies  and  hooligans   travelling  without  ticket,  if   dereliction  in duty - question left open.

 

 

 

For the petitioner                                  :   Ms. Rekha Aggarwal, Advocate

 

ORDER

 

Dated the  23rd  January,   2002

PER JUSTICE D.P. WADHWA, (PRESIDENT).

                        Petitioners-opposite parties are aggrieved by the order of the State Commission which in turn upheld the order of the District Forum allowing the complaint of the Respondents-complainants and awarding compensation and cost on the ground  of deficiency in service by the Northern Railway.

                        The four complainants are two couples - husband and wife of the age varying  from 64-75 years.  They had four reserved  berths in coach No.7 of Doon Express for 17.10.1997 for travel from Lucknow to Haridwar from where they were to go to visit Badrinath Dham.  They reached the railway station to board the train at the proper time.   They found that their berths were occupied by unauthorised persons.   Not only that  they  were  thrown  out of the coach by these occupants.   Some of the  complainants

also suffered injury.   They were in extreme mental agony as  for them it was important to perform the journey.   Their complaint to the Incharge, ‘thana’ GRP and Station Master fell on deaf years.  In fact, the Station Master showed his helplessness and the police refused to intervene.   Whole of the train was occupied by unauthorised persons who were also sitting on the roof top of the train and were going to attend Kissan Union Rally.  They were all ticketless travellers.     The case of the Railways before the District Forum was that it was difficult to get the berths  vacated  from the crowd as they might  otherwise  had become violent and damaged the Railways property.  It was announced that refund of fares would be given to the passengers who were holding valid tickets.

                        The whole episode is a strange commentary on the working of the Railways and the Police.   Four senior citizens holding reserved berths have been left high and dry.   Protection had been given to miscreants and law breakers in preference to law abiding citizens.   We give no credence  to the pleas of the Railways that the whole situation had created a law and order problem.  Their stand is totally indefensible.   District Forum has rightly pointed out that steps should have been taken well in advance in not allowing the miscreants and law breakers to enter the railway platform at all as it could not be said that their storming the railway station was sudden and the railway staff was caught  unaware.   Railway staff would have certainly known in advance about the impending  Kissan Rally and unauthorised persons gate crashing.   It would not have been something new to them as there have been persistent complaints of unauthorised persons occupying  the  berths  reserved  for bona fide and genuine passengers.   Not providing the

berths to the complainants when they were holding reserved tickets is a clear case of deficiency in service on the part of the Railways.

            We are also unable to appreciate the reluctance of the  Railway Police to act.   It is not their duty to give protection to bona fide passengers? Or is it their duty to give protection  to rowdies and hooligans travelling without ticket?  If their duty is former it was certainly a  case of dereliction of duty on their part.   We, however, need not say anything further on this.

                        District forum awarded only Rs.5,000/- as compensation to the complainants and refund of Rs.525/- being the fare and Rs.1000/-  as costs.  The order of the District Forum as noted above has been upheld by the State Commission on appeal filed by the opposite party.   However, appeal filed by the complainants for enhancement of the compensation was dismissed.

                        We do not find that there was any cause for the petitioners   to file this revision petition and it is dismissed.

 

…………………………….J.

                                                                                                (D.P. WADHWA)

                                                                                                   PRESIDENT

 

                       

                                                                                                ……………………………..J.

                                                                                                (J.K. MEHRA)

                                                                                                     MEMBER

                                                           

                                                                                                ……………………………..

                                                                                                ( RAJYALAKSHMI RAO)

                                                                                                                       MEMBER

 

                                                                                                ……………………………..

                                                                                                ( B.K. TAIMNI)

                                                                                                      MEMBER