'I told them I’m sick': Man wins Rs 30,000 after KSRTC conductor denies him a seat and fails to drop him at his designated stop

In a sharp reminder about passenger rights, the Malappuram District Consumer Commission has imposed a Rs 30,000 penalty on the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) for denying a seat to an ailing passenger and failing to drop him at his designated stop, PTI reports. The order came on a complaint filed by Mohammed Zainudheen Kormath, a resident of Thottassheriyara in Malappuram.

He had boarded a KSRTC bus from Amballur in Thrissur to Kolappuram recently.After boarding, the complainant realised there were no vacant seats. He informed the conductor about his medical condition and inability to stand for long. The conductor assured him that a seat would be available once the bus reached Thrissur and issued a ticket to Kolappuram.

At Thrissur, when some seats became vacant, Mohammed Zainudheen occupied one. However, another passenger later claimed the seat was reserved, and the conductor asked him to vacate it. With no other seats available, he was forced to continue the journey standing.Worse, the bus did not stop at his intended destination, Kakkad. Instead, it proceeded via the national highway without entering the service road, forcing him to alight at Kooriyad and causing additional hardship.


Upholding the complainant’s contention, the Malappuram District Consumer Commission observed that the failure to inform him about reserved seating and not allowing him to alight at the designated stop amounted to a clear deficiency in service.

The commission, comprising president K Mohandas and members Preethi Sivaraman and C V Muhammed Ismail, directed KSRTC to pay Rs 25,000 as compensation and Rs 5,000 towards litigation costs within 45 days. If the amount is not paid in time, an interest of nine per cent will apply.

(With PTI inputs)