SC Restores ₹8 Lakh Railway Compensation, Says Missing Ticket Cannot Defeat Claim

The Supreme Court has held that the absence of a railway ticket from a deceased passenger cannot, by itself, defeat a compensation claim, restoring an ₹8 lakh award to the parents of a man who died after falling from a moving train in Gujarat in 2017. The ruling reinforces legal protection for railway passengers and their families, making clear that claims must be assessed on the overall evidence and preponderance of probabilities, rather than recovery of a single document.

A Bench of Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and Atul S. Chandurkar set aside the Gujarat High Court's order rejecting compensation to the parents of Maheshbhai. He was travelling towards Surat via Ahmedabad on September 27, 2017, when he fell from a general compartment following a sudden jerk and jolt. He suffered grievous injuries, remained hospitalised for more than a month and died on October 31, 2017.

The Railway Claims Tribunal, on June 17, 2022, held that Maheshbhai was a bona fide passenger and that the fall constituted an “untoward incident” under the Railways Act, 1989. It awarded his parents ₹8 lakh with 9% annual interest from the date of the incident until the Tribunal's order. The Gujarat High Court later reversed the award, placing significant weight on the absence of the ticket.

The Supreme Court disagreed, noting that Maheshbhai's father had testified on oath that his son had purchased a ticket. The family said the ticket, handkerchief, wristwatch, comb and ₹800–900 cash were lost. Railway witnesses had also failed to check the victim's pockets. Considering his prolonged hospitalisation, the Court said it was unreasonable to insist that the ticket must have been preserved.

The ruling builds on the Supreme Court's 2018 Rina Devi judgment, which held that a missing ticket does not automatically negate bona fide passenger status, though claimants must first establish their case with credible evidence. Once that burden is discharged, the Railways may have to rebut it.

Under Section 124-A, railway compensation operates on a no-fault basis for qualifying untoward incidents, including accidental falls from passenger trains, subject to statutory exceptions such as suicide, self-inflicted injury, certain criminal acts and intoxication.

The Court also criticised the delayed railway investigation: the incident occurred in September 2017, but the report was prepared only on May 17, 2018. It held that the Railways could not benefit from its own delay and directed that the ₹8 lakh award be paid within 30 days.

The compensation amount reflects the 2016 amendment, which raised death compensation from ₹4 lakh to ₹8 lakh effective January 1, 2017. The ruling consequently strengthens a broader safeguard: loss of a ticket cannot alone erase a family's statutory right to compensation when surrounding evidence establishes bona fide travel.