NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has mandated the Indian Railways to revamp its complaint resolution mechanisms to ensure prompt and effective handling of public grievances. Justice Purishaindra Kumar Kaurav emphasised the Railways’ moral and statutory duty to address public concerns swiftly and efficiently, given its significant role in the public transportation system.
The court’s observations came in response to a plea filed by Razia Sultan, who faced issues with a malfunctioning train coach display board in 2017. Sultan, along with her family, nearly missed their train due to a faulty display and had lodged a complaint through the Railways’ web portal, which, according to her, was not adequately addressed.
Justice Kaurav criticised the Railways for its failure to provide a structured and effective complaint resolution system, stating that such mechanisms are crucial for the smooth operation of public transportation. The court also found the Railways’ handling of Sultan’s complaint lacking and highlighted the need for better measures to prevent similar issues in the future.
“Not only does the respondents have an obligation to ensure that its railway infrastructure is socially inclusive and accommodative of people from all backgrounds – though an obligation it has failed to comply with in the instance case – it must ensure prompt, effective and structured complaint resolution mechanisms which efficaciously ensure smooth and proper functioning of such mode of public transportation. The respondents’ submission that it pro forma forwarded the complaint to the relevant authorities does not inspire the obligation placed on it to ensure that the petitioner had her complaint heard and dealt with,” read the court order.