Train tickets meant to be sold before Eid were being sold on the black market, though many people could not find any tickets at the counters.
People were forced to buy over-priced train tickets from the black market scalpers yesterday, which was the last day for selling tickets from the counter.
A source informed that there are some tickets in possession of the railway guards, shopkeepers around the station and some other outsiders.
According to some sources an organised syndicate had bought the tickets in advance from the authority. The syndicate were particularly active in Chittagong, Comilla, Dhaka and some other places in the country. As a result passengers were forced to collect tickets from the black marketeers.
Denying any existence of a black market, Muhibur Rahman, the stationmaster of Sylhet rail station, said some people are reselling tickets after collecting them from the counters.
“We cannot take the liabilities for the resale of tickets,” the stationmaster added.
Like the rest of the country, advance train tickets were made available at the counters in Sylhet on July 20. All the tickets were sold out within hours.
Habib, a home-bound passenger for Eid, said he could not buy a ticket after standing in queue for hours. Later he found the same tickets for which he had to pay Tk50 extra per ticket. He termed it a “painful experience”.