Rejection of Intermediary Immunity: redBus Held Jointly Liable for Bus Cancellation
Parties: Ibibo Group Pvt. Ltd. (redBus) v. V. Anand & Anr.
A passenger booked confirmed sleeper tickets on redBus for an overnight interstate journey. Without any prior SMS or phone intimation, the private bus operator cancelled the departure. redBus refused an immediate bank refund, asserting that under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000, it acted merely as a technology intermediary and was not liable for the bus operator's service default.
The State Commission dismissed redBus's intermediary immunity defense. The Commission held that redBus charges a commercial booking fee, issues the digital ticket in its own trade name, and collects the passenger's money through its own payment gateway. It cannot wash its hands of responsibility when the contracted service fails. The Commission affirmed joint and several liability between redBus and the bus operator.