Abhi Bus leaves passengers stranded in Ayodhya: Wrong pickup instructions sent couple 10 km away to find booked bus missing; ordered Rs 30,000 payout
The order was passed by the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission Kannur on July 27, 2026 and both the operators were held jointly and severally liable.
Also read: Flipkart decided to pay Rs 38,990 after it found that the buyer’s mobile phone warranty started eight months before delivery
What was promised to the couple?
MC Presannakumar, a lawyer with 45 years of experience, booked two tickets through Abhi Bus Service India’s online portal on April 9, 2025, for a journey from Ayodhya to Prayagraj the next day. The fee of Rs 1,589 was paid through Google Pay. The ticket clearly stated that the pick-up time from Saket Petrol Bunk near Soorya Bus Stand in Ayodhya was 1.30pm and instructed to arrive 10 minutes early. The 11th and 12th seats were reserved.
What happened next was unlike any of these.
I’m standing on the road in Ayodhya The couple reached Saket Petrol Bunk around 1pm on April 10, 2025, and confirmed its location by asking nearby street vendors. Some vendors expressed doubts about whether any buses were waiting there at that time, but when Presannakumar called the operator’s helpline, he was told that the bus would arrive and was asked to wait.
Even though it was 13.35, there was still no bus. He called again. This time the response he received stunned him. The staff asked why he was stopping at the petrol depot and said he must be at chaurahe, a junction on the National Highway, about 10 kilometers away.
With no time to bargain, the couple rented a car and paid Rs 300 to get to the new place. What they found there made the situation even worse. A few buses were parked at the intersection to pick up passengers, but the bus they had booked was nowhere in sight. They were later told that the bus they had booked did not run at all in the afternoon. It was only working at 19.30.
The couple stood on a road in Ayodhya for more than 20 minutes on wrong instructions, followed a car for 10 kilometers on a second set of wrong instructions, and reached a place where their bus was not available at that time.
Why wasn’t this just an inconvenience?
Presannakumar’s wife Mini was not in good health. He had recently undergone surgery for varicose veins and was specifically advised by his doctors not to sit still for long periods of time. As the commission noted, the ordeal of standing on the roadside, driving across the city in a car, and waiting at a bus junction in the afternoon heat was a direct test of physical endurance for someone recovering from surgery.
Presannakumar sent legal notice to both operators on April 26, 2025. Neither of them responded. When the complaint came before the commission, both Abhi Bus Service India and its joint operator Vijay Travels, Surat did not attend the hearing and it was declared ex parte; This means that the commission decides the matter based entirely on the evidence presented by the complainant.
Also read: Rs 25 packet of Parle biscuits was 25 grams less: Man from Kerala earns Rs 50,000; The 150 gram pack weighed only 125 grams
What the commission found and ordered
The commission examined the ticket printout, chat records with Abhi Bus officials, Google Pay receipt, lawyer notice and postal receipts showing that the notices were returned without approval. The evidence was clear and irrefutable.
The Commission held both operators jointly and severally liable for the lack of service and unfair commercial practices, observing that the operators failed to fully provide the service they had promised to deliver after the fee was collected.
Abhi Bus Service India and Vijay Travels have been ordered to refund Rs 1,589 as ticket fare, pay Rs 20,000 as compensation for mental anguish and Rs 10,000 as litigation costs (total of Rs 31,589). The order has a 30-day compliance period. If the operators fail to make payment within this window, the principal amount of Rs 21,589 will attract interest at the rate of 9 percent per annum from the order date until full realization.
Check out the case decision here:
