M PANDURANGAM Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) It is true as found by the Courts below that the petitioner had contravened rules 120 and 362 of the General and Subsidiary Rules framed under section 47 of the Indian Railways Act. He had by oversight or inadvertance failed to take the line-clear token at Vikarabad station before proceeding to the next station, Gollaguda. He had, however, taken possession of the starting permit and the caution ticket which had been sent along with the line-clear token by the Assistant Station Master of Vikarabad Railway Station through P.W. 2, Mukhaddam.

(2.) It is also to be noted that the Railway Guard, P.W. 4, had checked the line-clear token and later given his signal for starting the train. All this proved positively that the line from Vikarabad to Gollaguda had been blocked and as deposed to by P.W. 3, the Divisional Mechanical Engineer, once the section is blocked, there is no possibility of another train coming from the opposite direction. At the next station, i.e., Gollaguda, the Assistant Station Master, P.W. 5, not having received the out-report in respect of the train in question from Vikarabad, took the line-clear from the next station Shankarpalle, blocked the line between Gollaguda and Shankarpalle and handed over the line-clear token to the points-Mukhaddam for being handed over to the petitioner who was the driver of the train. While he was on the platform, the train passed Gollaguda station which was a non-stop station, and the petitioner missed picking up the line-clear token from the points-Mukkaddam and stopped the train a little further up within the station limits. At that stage, the petitioner informed the points-Mukhaddam that he had left the token at Vikarabad itself. He then started the train after a few minutes and proceeded to the next station.

(3.) The petitioner appears to have been anxious to take the train to Secunderabad in time as the Governor was travelling by that train. In his over-anxiety, he apparently missed taking the token at Vikarabad station. That would certainly amount to a contravention of the rules but the petitioner has been charged and convicted for an offence under section 101(a) of the Indian Railways Act, which runs as under :- 101. " If a railway servant, when on duty, endangers the safety of any person- (a) by disobeying any general rule made, sanctioned, published and notified under this Act or * * * * * he shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both."