Throwing the punches is the Western Railway, which claims that the plastic seats and the metal plates bearing inscriptions over them at Malad, Kandivli, Borivli and Churchgate stations by the Majithia Foundation Trust have become an `eyesore'. But the latter, which had installed the seats four years ago, says its stand has been vindicated with the Bombay High Court restraining the railway from removing or damaging the seats.

In 1995, the trust had entered into an agreement with the railway to install seats at various stations free of cost on condition that they would not be removed or changed without its written consent. It also volunteered to repair, renovate and repaint the seats whenever the need arose. Endorsing these conditions, a letter written by the divisional railway manager (commercial) dated November 11, 1995,states that the seats would not be removed or changed without the trust's permission.

The trust, which also runs the Esplanade Education Society at Kandivli and Kalbadevi, had first installed the seats at Malad and Kandivli stations. In 1996, the railway asked it to install similar units at Churchgate, Borivli, Bandra and Dahisar as well. It had also authorised the trust to inscribe a sponsorer's name on the plates.

According to managing trustee, Navinchandra Majithia, trouble began in July 1997 ``when a number of officers changed at the Western Railway''. He says the railway had objected to the plates over the seats which had proverbs written on them along with the name of the trust, claiming that they ``obstructed visibility of the commuters''. ``If I wanted to earn money on the arrangement, I could have got a sponsor. Instead, I chose to bear the cost myself and write good thoughts for mass education of the public,'' says Majithia.

However, a senior railway official who refused to be named confidedthat advertisers have been pressurising them saying the plates were preventing commuters from viewing their advertisements on pillars and platforms on the extreme sides.

Western Railway Chief Public Relations Officer Vinod Asthana told Express Newsline that the railway is against displaying the trust's name on the plates as other parties had submitted requests to install similar seats. ``They ask us why we are not permitting them to display their names like the Majithia Trust,'' he said.

The trust has thus far installed more than 1,000 seats at various stations and hopes to install about 5,000 more. Majithia also alleges that the seats have been uprooted and damaged at various places.

The trust had first challenged the railway's ``arbitrary and illegal decision to remove the sitting units provided by the trust at the various railway stations'' in the City Civil Court on October 5. On October 7, the court refused to restrain the railway from removing or damaging the seats on the ground that it had theauthority to decide whether commuters were being obstructed or not. The trust then filed an appeal in the Bombay High Court which passed an order on October 8, directing the railway to maintain the status quo.

On October 11, the court granted interim relief to the trust, restraining the railway from removing or damaging the sitting units at the Kandivli, Malad, Borivli and Churchgate railway stations and from ``obstructing the plaintiffs from painting or writing/rewriting the name of the trust and good thoughts on the boards of the seats''. It has, however, prevented the trust from installing similar units at the Bandra and Dahisar railway stations till the matter is disposed of.