GENERAL MANAGER, EASTERN RAILWAY Vs. P CHATTOP ADHYAY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a Revision Petition against the Order dated 21st August, 1995 passed by the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, West Bengal, (for short the State Commission) by which it set aside the Order of the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, Calcutta. The present revision petitioners were the opposite parties in the complaint filed by the respondent herein before the District Forum. The parties will be referred to as they were arrayed in the complaint.

(2.) The facts as alleged by the complainant are that he is a Professor in the University of Burdwan. He is daily commuter from Howrah to Burdwan and at the relevant time he was holding a 2nd class quarterly season ticket from Lake Gardens Railway Station to Burdwan junction. He used to travel daily by the local trains, express trains and the Shantiniketan Express depending upon the timings for attendance at the University. According to the complainant and other commuters return journey from Burdwan to Howrah has all along been troublesome and exhausting by the local trains in view of dust and noise pollution on one hand and irregular timings of arrival at Howrah on the other. In view of that the commuters were compelled to board any train that stops at Burdwan between 1430 hours and 1630 hours including the Express trains. (Perhaps the Station Authorities and the Ticket Examiners were not objecting to such travel of the commuters from Burdwan to Howrah on the return journey even if they boarded super fast trains. It is an admitted case between the parties that on account of distance restrictions such season ticket holders were not entitled to travel by super fast trains). On 3rd August, 1994 the complainant alongwith other commuters boarded the Poorva Express, which is admittedly a super fast train, from Burdwan. The Ticket Checking Authorities of the Railway caught 27 persons travelling by that train without proper tickets. The complamant was one of them and a penalty of Rs. 192/- was imposed upon him. Later on, this news of penalising the complainant and some other teachers of Engineering College and others was published in a newspaper in the form of a press release. The case of the complainant is that when the season ticket holders were allowed to travel by local trains, express trains or mail trains there was no reason not to allow that facility to the complainant and the other commuters travelling by the super fast trains. The other grievance of the complainant was that the press-release was obviously a sinister attempt to defame the teachers and insult them and they feel aggrieved because of this defamation.

(3.) The complainant prayed for the facility or the alternatives stated by him in the letter addressed to the General Manager, relevant portion of which reads as follows: