Railways ordered to pay family Rs 2 lakh after protest disrupted Amritsar trip

NEW DELHI: The Delhi state consumer commission, in an order dated July 31, upheld a district consumer forum's decision directing the Railways to pay a family Rs 2 lakh as compensation after their Amritsar trip was disrupted because of the protest. The commission noted that train services were suspended because of the protest, it held that the Railways failed to properly inform and assist passengers which amounts to deficiency in service.How did the Amritsar trip turn into a consumer dispute?According to the commission's order, complainant M.K. Verma and seven members of his family had booked confirmed tickets on the Swarna Shatabdi Express for a two-day trip to Amritsar in April 2015. They had also made advance bookings for a hotel, taxi, and planned to visit the Wagah Border and the Golden Temple.The train reached Beas railway station around 1 pm, where passengers were initially told it would halt for only two minutes. Instead, it remained there for about four hours without proper announcements, food or drinking water. Around 5 pm, passengers were informed that the train would not continue to Amritsar and that they would have to arrange their own transport. The family hired an auto-rickshaw for Rs 4,000 to reach Amritsar, causing them to miss part of their travel plans.The next day, when they reached Amritsar railway station for the return journey, they were informed that the train would not start from Amritsar and they would have to travel to another station to board it. Claiming that the Railways' failure to provide timely information and assistance caused them financial loss, inconvenience and mental agony, the family approached the consumer forum seeking compensation.The Railways argued that train services had been disrupted due to the farmers' agitation in Punjab and that the decision to stop the train at Beas was taken only to ensure passenger safety. It also claimed there was no negligence or deficiency in service on its part.Why did the commission uphold compensation?The bench comprising President Sangita Dhingra Sehgal and Member Pinki noted that the Railways had not challenged the finding that it was deficient in service. The only issue before it was whether the compensation awarded by the district forum should be increased."While the Railway Administration cannot be faulted for taking operational decisions to safeguard passengers, it can certainly be held responsible for the complete lack of passenger assistance, absence of timely information, failure to make proper announcements and failure to provide reasonable facilities after the disruption," the commission noted.The commission observed that although the train services were disrupted because of an extraordinary law-and-order situation caused by the farmers' protest, passengers should have been informed in advance and provided proper assistance after the journey was interrupted."It is this omission which constitutes the deficiency in service already recorded by the district forum," it further added.The commission also rejected the family's request for enhanced compensation, saying they had not produced material to show they had suffered such exceptional losses as to justify a higher amount."The compensation awarded by the District Forum cannot be said to be arbitrary, unreasonable or grossly inadequate so as to warrant interference by this commission in appellate jurisdiction," the commission concluded.Dismissing the appeal, the commission upheld the district forum's order directing the Railways to pay Rs 25,000 each to the eight complainants, totalling Rs 2 lakh, along with Rs 16,000 towards litigation costs.