COIMBATORE: The District Consumer Redressal Commission has directed the private bus management to pay Rs 10,000 as relief to a passenger for charging him Rs 1 extra for his ticket in 2014. Based on a petition by K Chinraj (31) from Kovilpatti, the commission has also directed the private bus management (Menaga Transport) to bear the expenses for his case (an amount of Rs 3,000).
According to the petitioner, he had boarded the private bus (route number 65) from Railway Station to Singanallur on December 20, 2014. When the bus conductor issued a ticket with a fare of Rs 5 instead of the actual fare of Rs 4, he had raised questions about it. A similar thing happened again when he boarded the bus on January 1, 2015, along with his friend, for travelling from Singanallur to the railway station.
He submitted a petition to the Joint Commissioner of Transport Department, alleging that he had been charged extra fare for his ride, along with the ticket as the proof. But after no action was taken against it, the petitioner filed another case in the consumer redressal forum in 2015.
The investigation by the commission's Chairman R Thangavel, members P Marimuthu and G Suguna proved that the bus conductor had collected extra fare instead of the fare fixed by the transport department. The commissioner directed the management to pay the compensation, along with the case fees, and if it fails to do so, it will be charged 9 per cent interest on the sum.