New Delhi, July 18 -- The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Railways to clarify and reconsider the continued use of the term "second class passenger" in its manuals and official documents, observing that the class connotation should attach to the coach and not to the passenger, as the expression is "offensive to the spirit of the Constitution of India". A bench of justices Sanjay Karol and N Kotiswar Singh made the observation while deciding a compensation claim arising from the death of a passenger who fell from a running train in 2015. The court also suggested that the Railways consider an "exponential increase" in manpower at stations and trains to ensure effective implementation of safety measures aimed at preventing overcrowding and accidental falls. The judgment was delivered in an appeal filed by Lata, whose husband Chandrakant Thakkar died after falling from the Ahmedabad-Howrah Mail between Khandbada and Khatgaon while travelling from Raipur to Ahmedabad on November 28, 2015. The Railway Claims Tribunal and the Madhya Pradesh High Court had denied compensation on the ground that the deceased could not be proved to be a bona fide passenger because his ticket was not recovered after the accident. The Supreme Court reversed both decisions, holding that the absence of the ticket was not fatal to the claim and awarded Rs.8 lakh compensation to the widow. The court said railway manuals referred to "upper and lower class passengers" and "second class passengers", language which, according to the bench, required reconsideration in a constitutional democracy.P4...