The Supreme Court has held that the theft of personal belongings of a Passenger is not “deficiency of service” by Railways. Accordingly, the Bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah set aside orders passed by Consumer forum whereby Railways was directed to reimburse the stolen amount of cash to the Passenger.
“We fail to understand as to how the theft could be said to be in any way a deficiency in service by the Railways. If the passenger is not able to protect his own belongings, the Railways cannot be held responsible”, the Bench held.