NEW DELHI: The Perambalur district consumer commission has directed Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation authorities to pay Rs 50,000 compensation and Rs 10,000 costs to a passenger who alleged he was forced off a bus after his ticket was destroyed. The commission found deficiency in service for failing to enquire into his complaint. The order was passed on September 2, 2026.Why did the passenger approach the commission?According to the commission order, the passenger visited Vellore on March 23, 2026, to buy medicines for his son and later boarded a bus to Perambalur. He alleged that he paid Rs 500 for a ticket but was given a Rs 200 ticket, with the conductor promising to return the balance Rs 300 at the destination.During a tea break at Tiruvannamalai, the passenger returned to find another woman occupying his seat. He alleged that after he complained to the time-keeper, the conductor demanded his ticket, chewed it and spat it out. He further alleged that the conductor and driver then left in the bus after throwing out his bag.The passenger then took another bus to Perambalur and spent Rs 136. He sent a legal notice to the corporation’s regional and zonal managers on March 24, 2026, seeking the return of Rs 300, Rs 10 lakh compensation, costs and disciplinary action against the conductor and driver.However, the corporation disputed his allegations. It said electronic ticketing machine records showed that no ticket had been issued for travel between Vellore and Perambalur on the date mentioned by him. It also said the actual fare was Rs 212 and not Rs 200, and argued that a photograph of the bus did not prove that he had travelled in it.What did the commission find?The bench of President D Jawahar and members P Thilaka and M Muthukamaran did not accept the passenger’s allegation that he was illegally deboarded from the bus, saying the issue could not be decided on his evidence alone in the summary proceedings. However, it found that the corporation authorities had failed to properly enquire into his complaint.The commission noted that the passenger had specifically said the ticket was destroyed during an enquiry before the time-keeper at Tiruvannamalai. It said the corporation should have checked the allegation with the time-keeper or branch manager.“Complainant had stated that he made a complaint before the Time Keeper in Tiruvannamalai bus stand, and during enquiry, his ticket was chewed & destroyed by the 1st opposite party, in the presence of the said Time Keeper. Therefore the 3rd and the 4th opposite parties ought to have got a report from the Time Keeper or from the Branch Manager of the said bus stand, to check the veracity of the allegations made by the complainant,” the commission held.The commission also rejected the corporation’s argument that the passenger had no independent witness. It pointed out that the corporation had filed affidavits from the conductor and driver but had not produced a report or supporting affidavit from the time-keeper.“In fact, it is strange to note that the opposite parties are totally silent on this aspect in their written version, and there is not even a denial of this incident. Therefore the objection of the opposite parties that there was no independent witness falls flat. Opposite parties filed affidavits by the 1st and the 2nd opposite parties but failed to get a supporting affidavit / report from the Time Keeper,” the bench added.The commission said the regional and zonal managers had received the passenger’s legal notice but did not conduct any enquiry. It also considered documents showing his visit to Vellore and subsequent travel from Tiruvannamalai to Perambalur. The commission said the difference in ticket fare was not enough to reject his complaint without proper enquiry.“Right to be protected against unscrupulous exploitation of consumers is a basic right enshrined in the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, but in the case on hand, it was overlooked without conducting any enquiry. This Commission holds this as a definite deficiency in service on the part of the 3rd and the 4th opposite parties,” it further added.The commission held the regional and zonal managers responsible for deficiency in service. It awarded Rs 50,000 for the passenger’s mental agony and Rs 10,000 towards costs. The complaint against the conductor and driver was dismissed.What did the commission order?The Perambalur district consumer commission directed the corporation authorities to:
- Pay Rs 50,000 as compensation to the passenger.
- Pay Rs 10,000 towards costs.
- Make the payment within 45 days from receiving the order copy.
- Pay 9 percent annual interest on the Rs 60,000 amount from the date of the complaint until realisation if the payment is not made within the stipulated period.
The complaint against the conductor and driver was dismissed.
