Swapan Kumar singh :

Habiganj, Oct 14: Members of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB-9) arrested three alleged ticket scalpers with around 700 train tickets during a drive at Shaistaganj Railway Junction on Monday night. The operation was conducted by RAB-9, CPC-3, Shaistaganj Camp, following a tip-off.

The arrested individuals are Md. Sohel Mia (33) of South Barachar, Md. Jalil Sardar (40) of Noagaon in Baniachang, and Enam Mia (34) of Daudnagar in Shaistaganj. According to RAB, they had been running a long-standing syndicate involved in black marketing train tickets, hoarding both online and offline, creating artificial shortages, and selling tickets at inflated prices.

During the raid, over 700 tickets were recovered, including current, old, and advance tickets for multiple routes such as Sylhet–Dhaka.

Additional Superintendent of Police K.M. Shahidul Islam Sohag, media officer of RAB-9, confirmed,

“These individuals were part of an organized network engaged in large-scale ticket fraud, which caused immense suffering to passengers.”
They were produced before a mobile court, led by the Shaistaganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) and Executive Magistrate, and sentenced to 15 days in jail each along with a Tk 500 fine, then sent to Habiganj District Jail.

In a related development, Shaistaganj Railway Station Master Liton Chandra Dey, recently assuming charge, has launched a drive to evict hawkers and illegal ticket intermediaries. He emphasized ensuring fair ticket access for all passengers, maintaining a hawker-free and corruption-free station, and called for administrative support to sustain transparency and improved passenger service.

RAB officials added that operations against ticket black marketing and other illegal activities will continue to protect passengers and uphold law and order.