You have a confirmed railway ticket, but due to a possible clerical error, your mobile number is typed wrongly, sending the reservation to someone else, who cancels the ticket. You are then deboarded from the train!That’s what happened with K Jayasmitha in Kerala who is a native of Erumapetty in Thrissur who currently resides in Thiruvananthapuram.Indian Railways has been asked to compensate her. The order followed an incident in which she was made to get off a train around midnight despite having a valid reservation. She was subsequently arrested by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) on the allegation that she was travelling without a ticket.
What led to woman being deboarded at midnight
The incident took place on July 30, 2023, when Jayasmitha was travelling on train 16348 from Wadakkanchery to Thiruvananthapuram.Jayasmitha believed she was travelling with a confirmed and valid reservation. The problem became apparent only after she boarded the train and reached the berth allotted to her, where she found another passenger occupying the seat.She had been allotted berth 41 in coach S4, but on boarding the train, she found that the same berth had been assigned to another passenger.According to her complaint, the TTE informed her that her ticket had been cancelled online and asked her to pay Rs 500 as a fine for another berth. Jayasmitha could not make the payment in cash.With the issue unresolved and the train already underway, she was left without the berth for which she had originally held a confirmed reservation.When the train reached Aluva, she was handed over to the RPF.She was treated as if she had boarded the train without a ticket deliberately, despite the fact that she had originally held a genuine confirmed reservation and had not herself cancelled it.Jayasmitha was later released on bail. The Railways subsequently withdrew the case after determining that it had been registered incorrectly.
The wrong mobile number
A departmental inquiry later found that a digit in the mobile number entered during the booking process had been altered on the website. As a result, the reservation message was sent to a different mobile number, following which the person who received it cancelled the ticket.Jayasmitha, however, maintained that the mistake had been made by the booking clerk. She also told the commission that she lost her government contract job because of the criminal case arising from the incident.The commission directed her to approach the government regarding the loss of employment. It also instructed the minority welfare director to take a decision on her request within one month.
What Kerala State Human Rights Commission ruled
The Kerala State Human Rights Commission has directed the Railways to pay Rs 2 lakh in compensation.The order held the Railways responsible not only for the administrative mistake that set the incident in motion, but also for the manner in which officials dealt with the woman travelling alone after the reservation dispute arose on the train.In its order, commission chairperson Justice Alexander Thomas instructed the Railways to make the compensation payment within one month and submit written confirmation once the amount had been paid. If the compensation is not paid within six weeks, the Railways will have to pay interest at 8%.Thomas held that making a woman travelling alone leave a train at midnight amounted to wrongful action under Section 139 of the Railways Act. The commission found violations of Sections 137 and 139.The commission also observed that the manner in which Jayasmitha was treated was unfair, particularly as she lives alone without her parents. It held that the incident violated her constitutional and human right to live with dignity.The order has also allowed an inquiry to be conducted against the officials found responsible. It further permits the Southern Railway divisional railway manager to recover the compensation amount from the officials concerned, in accordance with the law.The commission has additionally instructed railway authorities to issue a circular immediately, directing officials to strictly follow Sections 137 and 139 and take necessary steps to ensure the safety of women travelling alone at night.
