Court rejects bail for railway ticket agent in VIP quota racket

While rejecting the bail application of Mohammed Tarique Mahafuz Ahmad Khan, 33, Additional Sessions Judge SB Dige held that the allegations were serious and that the possibility of him tampering with evidence, pressuring witnesses or absconding could not be ruled out

MUMBAI: The sessions court on Wednesday rejected the bail application of a railway ticket agent accused of being part of a racket, which allegedly used forged Lok Bhavan letterheads, signatures, stamps and seals to secure railway tickets under the VIP quota. The police told the court that the accused and his associates had allegedly got around 400 e-tickets confirmed using forged documents linked to the Lok Bhavan and 23 other government offices.

Court rejects bail for railway ticket agent in VIP quota racket

While rejecting the bail application of Mohammed Tarique Mahafuz Ahmad Khan, 33, Additional Sessions Judge SB Dige held that the allegations were serious and that the possibility of him tampering with evidence, pressuring witnesses or absconding could not be ruled out.

The case came to light after Vishal Shinde, an assistant at Lok Bhavan, received two letters on February 6 bearing the name, signature and stamp of Abhaysinha Deshmukh, an IPS officer and personal assistant attached to the governor’s office. The letters had been sent to the chief commercial manager, Central Railway, CSMT, for verification of railway reservation confirmation. They were found to be forged, after which Shinde lodged a complaint with the Malabar Hill police.

Police told the court an inquiry into the passenger’s name and record numbers of the tickets showed they had been booked using Khan’s ID. A passenger, Jayprakash Yadav, allegedly told investigators that Khan was involved in making railway reservations under the VIP quota.

The prosecution said Khan had disclosed during investigation that he had booked tickets prepared on forged Lok Bhavan letterheads bearing forged signatures, and handed them to co-accused Deepak Kumar for confirmation. Police said they also wanted to verify Khan’s handwriting and signature.

The alleged operation extended beyond Lok Bhavan, with police claiming that Khan and his associates had got around 400 e-tickets confirmed under the VIP quota using forged letterheads of Lok Bhavan and nearly 23 other government offices.

The accused allegedly included Vinay Rawat, Deepak Kumar, Anup Kumar, Sagar Thakkar, Amrish Thakkar and Akash Maithi. Police alleged that Rawat corresponded with the railway department for VIP quota bookings, while Khan paid him ₹1,400 and Deepak ₹200.

Investigators also alleged that Maithi and another accused, Tappu Bhai alias Pappu, had arranged forged Lok Bhavan rubber seals through Dhaval Bhavesh Vavia of Shivam Enterprises. Three forged rubber stamps were allegedly seized from Sagar Thakkar and Amrish Thakkar.

Khan, however, claims he had been falsely implicated. His lawyer said he had worked as a railway ticket agent for six years, had no criminal antecedents and had been in custody since July 18. The defence argued that the investigation relied largely on documentary and electronic evidence already seized and that no further recovery was required from Khan.

Rejecting bail, the court noted that Khan had allegedly booked tickets from his own ID. These tickets were subsequently confirmed on the basis of forged Lok Bhavan documents. It also took note of the alleged recovery of forged stamps and seals from some accused and the continuing investigation.

“Considering all these aspects, the possibility of tampering with evidence, pressurizing the witness or absconding cannot be ruled out,” the judge said, giving the investigators an opportunity to complete their investigation.