Supreme Court Awards 2L Compensation to RSRTC Conductor Fired for Wrongly Punching Tickets.
The Supreme Court awarded Rs 2 lakh to a conductor who worked for the Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation for three years before being dismissed in 1982 due to incorrect ticket punching. The court noted that he likely reached retirement age given the time that has passed. The conductor appealed to the Supreme Court after the High Court allowed a second appeal from the respondents, overturning the earlier decisions of the lower courts. Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Rajesh Bindal stated, “Given the time since his appointment, he must have reached retirement age.”
AOR Abhishek Gupta represented the appellant, while Advocate BS Rajesh Agrajit represented the respondent. The appellant began working as a conductor in 1979 but was dismissed in 1982 for incorrectly punching tickets once and for allowing passengers without tickets on three occasions while on duty. His dismissal was upheld on appeal. He then filed a civil suit against the dismissal, which the Trial Court found to be illegal due to a lack of fair hearing. The respondents appealed this decision, and the First Appellate Court upheld the Trial Court’s ruling. However, the respondents later filed a second appeal, which was granted on the basis that the Civil Court lacked jurisdiction, and the appellant should have used the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. This ruling was then challenged in the Supreme Court.
The appellant argued that the Civil Court had the authority to handle the case because there was a serious breach of natural justice in the punishment given. In contrast, the respondents claimed that the Civil Court did not have the authority, and the appellant should seek remedy under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. The Bench noted that the appellant worked for the respondent-Corporation for about three years. It also pointed out that given the time since his appointment, he likely reached retirement age. The Bench concluded that justice would be served by granting the appellant a one-time compensation of ₹2,00,000 instead of deciding on the jurisdiction of the Civil Court or sending the appellant to the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 for relief. Therefore, the petition was resolved by awarding ₹2,00,000 in compensation.
Cause Title: Bastiram v. Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation & Anr. [Neutral Citation: 2024 INSC 934]
Appearance:
Appellant: AOR Abhishek Gupta
Respondents: Advocates BS Rajesh Agrajit,Aakash Sharma, Priya Nagar, AOR Shyamal Kumar
