CBI conducts searches in 12 locations over illegal sale of railways e-tickets

During searches, digital devices, phones containing the illegal software, incriminating documents & other details including tickets of passengers booked using illegal software were recovered

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday conducted searches at 12 locations across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Delhi during an investigation of a case related to the illegal sale of reserved berth e-tickets of Indian Railways through the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) website.

The agents were reportedly using illegal software to get around the manual entry process for buying tickets. (Representative file image)

“During searches, digital devices, mobile phones containing the illegal software, incriminating documents and other details including tickets of passengers booked earlier using illegal software were recovered,” said the central agency.

According to officials, the agents were reportedly using illegal software to get around the manual entry process for buying tickets, which were then offered to customers at a premium.

The CBI located those involved in this criminal trade and carried out concurrent searches.

“The person responsible for selling and distributing the illegal software to various agents was also identified,” the agency informed.

On March 1, 2021, a complaint was filed in Delhi which claimed that one of the accused booked e-tickets without IRCTC or the railway’s approval via an unapproved app and website.

The business involved agents, distributors, software developers, website managers, the owner, and a long list of other people in the process of creating and selling tickets, officials said.