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Sh. Ramakant & Anr. vs. Union of India

First Appeal from Order · CNR No. DLHC010250032025Decided 1 Oct 2026New Delhi Bench
FAO 116/2025CNR: DLHC010250032025
Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri

Background

The appellants are the family of a man who, they said, bought a ticket at Kanchausi station and fell from a passenger MEMU train near Phaphund in November 2021 because of crowding. The Railway Claims Tribunal (Principal Bench, Delhi) dismissed their claim on 14.02.2025. The appellants appealed, and the respondent did not appear.

Decision Breakdown

The High Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the Tribunal. It found that the ticket was not recovered, and that the appellants' own account of the journey was materially inconsistent with the contemporaneous railway record. The family's version of when and how the deceased had travelled was also at odds with statements made at the scene by his brother, who identified the body and was a panch witness to the panchnama. On that basis the Court held the deceased was not shown to be a bona fide passenger who died in an untoward incident under Section 124-A of the Railways Act.

Lesson Learnt

A compensation claim must prove that the deceased was a genuine passenger, and inconsistent accounts across documents and witnesses can defeat it. Keeping the ticket and clear records of the journey is important.

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