Passengers Forced to Stand Despite Reserved Seats; Railways Ordered to Pay 10 Times The Ticket Cost

A Bihar court has ordered Railways to compensate four passengers who were allegedly forced to travel standing despite having confirmed berths on LTT Patna Express. The commission held Railways responsible for deficiency in service and directed authorities to refund ticket money with interest, pay Rs 20,000 compensation and cover litigation costs.

A consumer court in Bihar has held the Indian Railways responsible for failing to provide confirmed reserved berths to passengers during a train journey. The Bhojpur Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission ordered the Railways to pay compensation to four passengers who were allegedly forced to complete their journey standing despite having confirmed tickets. The commission observed that the passengers faced 'mental, physical and economic harassment' because of the Railways’ failure to provide the promised service, according to a report by NDTV.

Passengers Claimed Railway Staff Occupied Their Berths

According to reports, the incident took place on the LTT Patna Express while the passengers were travelling from Vindhyachal in Uttar Pradesh’s Mirzapur district to Ara in Bihar. The complaint stated that when the four passengers boarded the train, they found railway staff allegedly occupying the berths that had been reserved in their names.

Despite repeatedly requesting the staff to vacate the seats, the passengers claimed they were denied access to their confirmed berths and had no choice but to travel standing.

The passengers later approached the consumer commission seeking justice.

Court Orders Refund and Compensation

The bench, comprising commission president Krishna Pratap Singh and member Kamal Kishore Singh, ruled in favour of the passengers after reviewing documents and evidence submitted before the court.

The commission directed the North Central Railway and the Ministry of Railways to refund the ticket booking amount of Rs 1,876.80 with 8 per cent annual interest.

Apart from the refund, the Railways were also ordered to pay Rs 20,000 as compensation for harassment and Rs 15,000 towards legal expenses.

The court further stated that if the amount is not paid within 60 days, the passengers would have the right to recover the money through legal proceedings with 10 per cent annual interest.

Complaints Allegedly Ignored During Journey

According to the complaint, the passengers had tried to seek help during the journey itself through railway helplines and social media platforms, including Railway Seva and Rail Ministry channels.

Although complaint reference numbers were reportedly generated through SMS, the passengers alleged that no effective action was taken while they were on the train.

The passengers also claimed that when they raised the issue again before a travelling ticket examiner (TTE) at Buxar station, they were allegedly told to “manage” because of heavy crowding inside the train.

Railways Denied Service Failure

During the hearing, the Railways argued that the issue was related to law and order and therefore came under the jurisdiction of the Government Railway Police (GRP).

Railway authorities also denied any deficiency in service and claimed that appropriate action had already been taken regarding the complaint.

However, after examining tickets, complaint records, text messages and photographs submitted by the passengers, the commission concluded that the passengers had indeed been denied their reserved seats.