Tatkal Train Ticket Black-Marketing Racket Busted at Wathar Station; Two Held with Rs 60,000 Worth Live Tickets
Satara/Pune, 21st February 2026: A joint vigilance raid by Central Railway and the Railway Protection Force dismantled an alleged unauthorized ticketing syndicate at Wathar station in Pune division on February 18, 2026, with two individuals caught red-handed for black-marketing Tatkal tickets.
The apprehended accused were identified as 32-year-old Ganesh Laxman Wadekar and 35-year-old Vikram Ashok Anpat. Officials intercepted the duo at the station’s ticketing office after acting on specific intelligence inputs regarding illegal Tatkal bookings for commercial gain.
During the operation, authorities seized multiple confirmed Third AC tickets booked under the Tatkal quota for destinations including Varanasi (BSB) and Madgaon (MAO). Three mobile phones a Vivo handset from Wadekar and Samsung and Motorola devices from Anpat were also confiscated.
Preliminary examination of the seized mobile phones revealed live railway reservation tickets worth approximately ₹60,000 along with a large number of past journey tickets and records of online financial transactions allegedly linked to the illegal ticketing activity. Investigators also found digital evidence indicating that the accused had been engaged in black-marketing of railway tickets for a considerable period, with tickets worth lakhs of rupees previously sold to passengers.
During questioning, both individuals admitted to operating as unauthorized agents and procuring confirmed tickets for customers in exchange for illegal monetary premiums, according to officials.
Following the raid, the Railway Protection Force, Satara, registered a case under relevant provisions of the Railway Act. Further investigation is underway to ascertain the extent of the network and identify other persons involved.
