Mumbai: Central Railway has suspended ticket checker Rajendra Tribhuvan and initiated an inquiry into the incident involving a 17-year-old schoolgirl who was allegedly taken between several stations following a dispute over an AC travel fare.“Tribhuvan has been suspended and an inquiry has been initiated into the matter,” CR officials said.The decision about suspension was conveyed to the girl’s parents too after her mother met a senior CR official at CR headquarters on Tuesday. However, the parents are upset that no action had been taken against the RPF personnel who “made her feel like a criminal”.CR officials said Tribhuvan had initially joined the railways as a Class IV employee and subsequently became a ticket checker after successfully clearing the department’s internal examination.The Class 12 student, who was travelling alone in an AC local on Sept 11, had a valid First Class ticket but was unaware that a separate travel authority was required for AC travel. Her parents had alleged that after the fare dispute, she was taken from Mansarovar to Panvel and subsequently to Wadala Road, despite her mother travelling to collect her.At Panvel, Dhumal became involved in the matter. The parents alleged that the constable refused to identify herself initially and spoke harshly to the girl’s father on the phone. They were later told that the girl would be taken to Belapur, but she was eventually taken to Wadala Road.The girl’s father had alleged that his daughter was handled “like a criminal” and said she had undergone counselling to help her overcome the trauma.CR had earlier said its inquiry found no evidence that the minor was deliberately abandoned. It said that after she was identified as a minor, instructions were issued for her safe handover at Wadala Road and that she was handed over to a railway employee who represented that he was known to the family, in the presence of RPF and other railway staff.The railway had also said the concerned personnel were counselled to exercise greater care while dealing with minors and ensure properly verified handovers.
