A man from UP, Tungnath Chaturvedi has won the 22-year-long legal case he fought against the Indian Railways. The suit filed pertained to an overpriced ticket that Chaturvedi had bought back in the year 1999. Tungnath, who is also a lawyer by profession, tells that the incident happened at Mathura Cantonment railway station when he was traveling from Mathura to Moradabad. Unfortunately, a clerk at the ticket-booking center charged him over 20 rupees ($0.25; £0.21) for the two tickets he had bought at the time.
According to BBC, the cost of each ticket was Rs 35 and when the Indian man gave Rs 100 note to the clerk, he got only Rs 10 in return. The cost of two tickets was Rs 70 but instead they were charged Rs 90. When Chaturvedi informed the clerk that he was overcharged, his request was reportedly rejected and no refund was allotted to him. Upon his return, the lawyer decided to file an official complaint against the officials in a consumer court in Mathura. After participating in over 100 court proceedings, the consumer court has finally declined to decide in favor of the lawyer.
Talking about his 22-year-long case, Chaturvedi told the BBC, “I have attended over 100 hearings regarding this matter. But you cannot value the energy and time that I have wasted fighting on this matter.” He highlighted the slow pace of consumer courts India This is due to the high burden of impending matters. The 66-year-old revealed that it takes years to solve a simple case like his. Although his journey was not an easy one, the lawyer revealed that the Indian Railways attempted to dismiss his case, claiming that they were only responsible for addressing matters related to train travel in India.
He said, “Railways also tried to dismiss the matter, saying that complaints against railways should be addressed to the Railway Tribunal and not the consumer court. But we have used the 2021 judgment of the Supreme Court to prove this. to ensure that the matter may be heard in the consumer court.” Now, in a judgment order issued last week, the consumer court has asked the railways to pay a fine of Rs 15,000 ($188; £154) to Chaturvedi. In addition, Chaturvedi will be awarded 12 per cent for each year between 1999 and 2022. A refund of Rs 20 will also be available at % interest rate. In any case, if the Railways fails to fulfill the condition within 30 days, the rate of interest will be increased to 15%, the court demanded.
Talking about the court’s decision, Chaturvedi said, “It is not the money that matters. It was always about the fight for justice and the fight against corruption, so it was worth it. Also, since I myself I am a lawyer, so I didn’t have to pay money to any lawyer or go to court. It can be very expensive.” He concluded by advising that there was no need to give up even if the battle seemed difficult. Chaturvedi hopes that his case will serve as an inspiration to many.
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