Court asks KSRTC to pay Rs 1,000 for failure in picking up passenger

Bengaluru, Nov 15: A consumer court in Bengaluru has ordered the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) to pay Rs 1,000 as compensation to a passenger for failing to pick him up from the designated bus stop.

67-year-old S. Sangameshwaran, a resident of Banashankari in the city, had booked a return ticket to Tiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu from Bengaluru on a KSRTC Airavat Club Class bus on October 12, 2019.

While returning from Tiruvannamalai on October 13, 2019, though the passenger reached the designated bus stop on time he was not picked up and instead received an SMS containing the details of the trip and contact number of the conductor.

When the passenger called up, the bus conductor maintained that he had already left Tiruvannamalai and blamed him for turning up late. The elderly man had to take a bus to Hosur in Tamil Nadu and another bus to reach Bengaluru.

Sangameshwaran filed a complaint against the KSRTC Managing Director and General Manager with the Bengaluru Second Urban Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.

The KSRTC maintained that the complainant is not liable to receive compensation as per the law. It argued that the case should be dismissed as it happened in Tiruvannamalai which is beyond its jurisdiction. It maintained that the complainant was sent an SMS about shifting of the bus stop.

It also said as many as 23 passengers boarded the bus from the changed location.

The consumer court didn't agree with the arguments of KSRTC as it failed to produce any evidence. The consumer court ordered the KSRTC to pay a compensation of Rs 1,000 for the inconvenience caused to the complainant, who is a senior citizen and asked it to refund the Rs 497 as ticket fare and an additional amount of Rs 200, which he paid as fare in other buses to reach Bengaluru.

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Who is Ramachandra Rao? Karnataka DGP, actress Ranya’s stepfather suspended over viral ‘obscene’ video

News Network

January 20,2026

Karnataka DGP (Civil Rights Enforcement) K Ramachandra Rao was suspended with immediate effect, as per a state government order issued on Monday, 19 January. The order cited conduct unbecoming of a government servant and causing embarrassment to the state administration.

The Karnataka government suspended Rao after a purported video showed him in a compromising position with a woman inside his official chamber. The video went viral on social media. Rao rejected the videos outright, terming them "fabricated and false".

Who is K Ramachandra Rao?

Rao is a DGP-rank officer who was heading the Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement until his suspension. He was promoted to DGP in September 2023 and assumed office in October 2023, the Sunday Guardian reported.

He also served as the Chairman and Managing Director of the Karnataka State Police Housing and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited.

His stint as the Inspector General of Police (IGP) for the Southern Range was also marred by controversy. In 2014, during a cash seizure near Mysuru’s Yelwal, officials claimed the seized amount was ₹20 lakh, while the accused (Kerala-based merchants) claimed it was around ₹2.27 crore.

Rao, who was present during the seizure, denied all allegations. However, he was transferred soon after.

Allegations of collusion with a businessman surfaced, and a senior police officer was quoted by The Sunday Guardian as saying, “In Rao’s case, the CID has clearly mentioned that there was a great degree of lapse on the part of Rao and a deputy superintendent of police after it was brought to their notice that a few policemen, including a gunman attached to the IGP, were involved in the robbery.”

Rao had denied all wrongdoing in that incident. Despite past controversies, he rose to the state’s top police position, the Sunday Guardian reported.

Ranya Rao’s stepfather

Rao is the stepfather of Kannada actress Harshavardhini Ranya alias Ranya Rao, accused of orchestrating the illegal import of gold worth over ₹12.56 crore from Dubai to India along with two others — businessman Tarun Raju, and jewellery dealer Sahil Jain.

‘Obscene video’ controversy

A viral video showed Rao behaving inappropriately with a woman inside his office while in uniform.

The Karnataka government said in its Monday order that “vide videos and news reports widely broadcast on public news channels and media platforms, it is observed that Dr K Ramachandra Rao has acted in an obscene manner which is unbecoming of a Government Servant and also causing embarrassment to the Government.”

The order said the matter was examined by the state government, which found that the officer's conduct amounted to a violation of Rule 3 of the All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968.

The government said it is prima facie satisfied that "it is necessary to place Rao under suspension with immediate effect, pending inquiry".

During the suspension period, Rao will be entitled to subsistence allowance as per Rule 4 of the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969.

The order also places restrictions on his movement, stating that during the period of suspension, the officer must not leave headquarters under any circumstances without the written permission of the state government.

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