Recovery of valid ticket from deceased person shifts burden onto Railways to disprove bona fide passenger status.

On 22.10.2016, the deceased, Sanjay Malik, allegedly fell from a train near Ghaziabad Railway Station while traveling to Sadar Bazaar, Delhi, on a valid ticket

The Station Master received information from a goods train driver that a person had been run over near Line No. 7

While a valid journey ticket was recovered from the deceased during jamatalashi, the Railway Claims Tribunal dismissed the claim on 02.11.2017, ruling that the deceased was not a bona fide passenger and that the event was not an "untoward incident" but rather a result of the deceased's own negligence or trespassing

The appellants challenged this dismissal before the High Court

1. Whether the death of the deceased occurred due to an "untoward incident" as defined under Section 123(c) of the Railways Act, 1989

2. Whether the deceased was a bona fide passenger at the time of the incident

The court applied Section 123(c) and Section 124-A of the Railways Act, 1989, which define "untoward incidents" and establish the principle of strict liability for compensation

It specifically relied on the precedent Union of India v. Rina Devi (2019) 3 SCC 572, which mandates a liberal interpretation of "accidental falling," clarifies that negligence of a passenger does not exempt the Railways from liability unless a specific statutory exception is met, and establishes that recovery of a ticket from the body shifts the burden of proof to the Railways to disprove bona fide travel

The Court found that the Tribunal's findings contradicted the contemporaneous records, such as the Station Master's memo and inquest proceedings, which placed the body within railway limits near heavy train movement

The Court noted that the Railways produced no eyewitnesses to prove "negligence" or "trespass," and the DRM report admitted the cause of death was "unknown"

The Court reasoned that since the Howrah Rajdhani Express had passed the spot at 100 kmph shortly before the body was discovered, it was entirely plausible the deceased fell from a train and was subsequently run over

Furthermore, because a verified, valid ticket was recovered from the deceased's person, the legal burden shifted to the Railways to prove he was not a bona fide passenger—a burden they failed to discharge with mere assumptions about the deceased's status as a "daily commuter"

The Court allowed the appeal and remanded the matter to the Tribunal to assess and disburse the compensation amount within two months. The parties were directed to appear before the Tribunal on 28.05.2026