Title - CAT confirms punishment for loco pilot

CHENNAI:
Central Administrative Tribunal has confirmed the punishment imposed by Southern Railway on a loco pilot who was responsible for derailment of three coaches in 2008.S. Jayaprakash, a senior assistant loco pilot, was charge-sheeted for derailment of three coaches in Tiruppattur railway station. The derailment was owing to his failure to ensure proper coupling of coaches and it caused loss to railway property. Southern Railway punished him with reduction in his salary to the level of an assistant loco pilot. Also, the authority fixed five years as the time limit by which the penalty would come to end. Filing the present application, Jayaprakash sought the quashing of the punishment imposed on him and contended that the enquiry against him was not properly conducted.Dismissing his contention, the Bench comprising B. Venkateswara Rao and R. Satapathy held that the applicant had not performed his duties and it had been proved in an enquiry in which he had participated and cross examined the witnesses produced against him.