Pargat Singh, 63, claimed he was dismissed by Travel West Midlands without any reason. He said the complaint in October was motivated by racism. However, he admits that he went behind a wall to urinate but did not know he was being observed. The firm said his account still made him guilty of gross misconduct.

Travel West Midlands' staff performance manager Jyoti Kapoor told the tribunal in Birmingham a customer had claimed the driver had committed "an act of gross indecency" near a store close to Coventry's Ricoh Arena on 3 October last year.

The woman, who refused to give her first name or contact details, alleged he had climbed over a picket fence and defecated on a grass verge.

The passenger said he then wiped his hands on the bars of the fence before returning to his bus. Kapoor also said the passenger claimed Singh was abusive to her. "I considered that the passenger complaint was credible," she said.

"He - Singh - accepted that the passenger had challenged him about washing his hands when he returned to the vehicle," she was quoted as saying by the BBC.