On Tuesday, the Central Railway Vigilance Department uncovered a ticket black marketing racket operating aboard the Varanasi-Mumbai Mahanagari Express. The operation led to the arrest of two contractual staff—Amit Mishra, a coach attendant, and Dipu Singh, a cleanliness supervisor—both working on contract.
Touts Apprehended in Ticket Collection Attempt
Additionally, three individuals accused of ticket touting were caught while attempting to collect the illegally obtained tickets from Mishra and Singh. They have been identified as Pinku Kumar, Muzammil Iqbal, and Nafees.
"The arrested accused were allegedly engaged in the unauthorized sale and distribution of confirmed railway tickets to unentitled passengers, violating railway regulations and undermining passenger booking protocols," said an official, adding that the accused were handed over to CSMT RPF for further action.
Excess Cash and Tatkal Tickets Found During Checks
The Vigilance team conducted a surprise raid on the Mahanagari Express as it arrived at Kalyan station around 10:00 am. During the check, officials approached the A2 coach attendant, later identified as Amit Kumar Mishra, and asked him to produce his Private Cash (PC). Mishra presented Rs. 2,500, against a declared amount of Rs. 1,000, revealing an excess of Rs. 1,500. Along with the cash, officials found an envelope containing two live Tatkal PRS tickets booked from a remote location — Chewoki, Prayagraj.
Upon interrogation, Mishra admitted that he had received Rs. 200 per ticket from an agent to deliver the tickets to a recipient at Thane station.
OBHS Supervisor Also Implicated
The Vigilance team then proceeded to Coach B2, where another staff member, Dipu Singh Chouhan, who serves as an On-Board Housekeeping Services (OBHS) supervisor, was on duty. Upon checking his belongings, four live Tatkal PRS tickets were discovered, booked from Jaitwar (JTW), another remote location. Chouhan admitted he too was paid to hand over the tickets to a tout at Thane.
Touts Apprehended at Thane and CSMT
As the train reached Thane, a man approached the coach to collect the tickets and was immediately apprehended by the Vigilance team stationed there. Upon arrival at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), two more individuals who had come to collect tickets were taken into custody. None of the three individuals were bona fide passengers of the tickets they attempted to collect.
Seizure of Live Tatkal Tickets
In total, six live Tatkal tickets were seized, each listing 3 to 5 passenger names, with an estimated total value of Rs. 34,000. The tickets were promptly blocked to prevent misuse.
Investigation Into Larger Nexus Underway
A Central Railway official stated, “This operation has helped expose a larger nexus involving the misuse of contractual staff for illegal confirmed ticket delivery. Further investigations are underway.”
