Former Chief Minister of Bihar and Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav has approached the Delhi High Court challenging the charges framed by the lower court in the alleged IRCTC scam. This petition of Lalu Yadav has been listed for hearing before the bench of Justice Swarnkant Sharma in Delhi High Court on Monday.

Rouse Avenue Court had framed charges against Lalu Yadav and others.

In October last year, the Special Court of Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court had framed charges of corruption and criminal conspiracy against Lalu Prasad Yadav and other accused. In this case, charges of criminal conspiracy and fraud have also been leveled against Lalu Yadav’s wife and former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi, his son and Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav and others.

While framing the charges, the court of Special Judge Vishal Gogane had said that when Lalu Prasad Yadav was the Railway Minister, he allegedly misused his position. According to the court, the eligibility conditions related to IRCTC’s hotel tender were manipulated so that favored companies could be benefited.

The court admitted that prima facie Lalu Yadav had knowledge of the conspiracy.

Rouse Avenue Court also admitted that prima facie Lalu Yadav was aware of this alleged conspiracy and he was actively involved in the decision process. This caused huge loss to the government treasury. This case started with the FIR registered by CBI in the year 2017.

According to CBI, between 2004 and 2009, when Lalu Yadav was the Railway Minister. Then a conspiracy was hatched to give the tender of IRCTC hotels located in Patna and Puri to certain private parties. In return, the accused were allegedly given bribe in the form of land and shares. After completion of the investigation, CBI filed a charge sheet against Lalu Prasad Yadav and 11 other accused. Now it will be decided in the Delhi High Court whether further action will continue on the allegations made by the lower court or not.

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As soon as the new year starts, most of the people want that the year should start with the visit of some holy and auspicious place, in such a situation the name of Mata Vaishno Devi is taken first. Every year lakhs of devotees visit Jammu to visit Mata Vaishno Devi, but arranging train tickets, hotel booking and food sometimes becomes expensive and troublesome. To overcome this problem, IRCTC launches special tour packages from time to time.

Now, keeping in mind the convenience of the devotees, IRCTC has announced Mata Vaishno Devi Rail Tour Package. This package is especially for those who want comfortable travel, assured train tickets and accommodation facilities in low budget. If you are planning to visit Vaishno Devi on New Year, then this package can prove to be very beneficial for you.

How much rent will I have to pay?

IRCTC has fixed the fare according to the needs of different passengers. Like single occupancy i.e. staying alone is Rs 18,050, twin sharing is Rs 14,250, triple sharing is Rs 13,650, if there is a child of 5 to 11 years then the fare will be Rs 11,750 with a bed, whereas for a child of 5 to 11 years and without a bed the fare will be Rs 11,350. According to IRCTC, if there is a need for triple sharing or an extra bed for the child, a separate mattress will be provided, so that there is no lack of comfort.

What facilities will be available in the package?

The biggest feature of this tour package is that many important expenses are already included in it, due to which the travelers do not have to worry about separate bookings. This package includes 3AC train ticket from Mumbai to Katra and Katra to Mumbai, 2 nights hotel stay at Katra, 2 times breakfast and 2 dinners at hotel, travel insurance and GST. Considering all these facilities, this package is considered much cheaper and convenient than booking separate tickets and hotels.

When and where will the journey take place?

This rail tour package will depart from Bandra Terminus in Mumbai every Sunday. The duration of the entire journey will be 4 nights and 5 days. This package is also convenient for working people, because there will be no need for much leave. Although this package is quite affordable, some expenses are not included in it. Such as local transfer from railway station to hotel and from hotel to station, darshan slip and other entry tickets of Mata Vaishno Devi, personal expenses like shopping, extra food etc.

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IRCTC Dividend: Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) on Wednesday (November 12) announced the results of the second quarter of the financial year 2025-26. During this period, the company earned a profit of Rs 342 crore, which is 11 percent more than Rs 308 crore in the same quarter last year.

During July-September, the company’s revenue also increased by 7.7 percent to Rs 1146 crore, which was estimated at Rs 1064 crore in the same period last year. EBITDA also increased by 8.3 percent to Rs 404 crore from Rs 372.8 crore in the same quarter a year ago. The company’s EBITDA margin stood at 35.2 percent, which is slightly more than 35 percent in the second quarter of FY25.

Know when is the record date?

Now the company has decided to distribute some part of its profit among the investors in the form of dividend. IRCTC has declared a dividend of Rs 5 per share on equity shares of face value Rs 2. The company has set the record date for this on Friday, November 21, 2025. Similarly, in the first quarter, the company had talked about paying Re 1 on a share with a face value of Rs 2.

status of company’s shares

On Wednesday, IRCTC shares closed at Rs 715.50, up Rs 5.05 or 0.71 per cent on BSE. However, during trading its price reached Rs 718.05. The 52-week high level of the share is Rs 859.95 and its 52-week low level is Rs 655.70.

Disclaimer: (The information provided here is being given for information only. It is important to mention here that investment in the market is subject to market risks. Always take expert advice before investing money as an investor. ABPLive.com never advises anyone to invest money here.)

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If you too are dreaming of having darshan of 7 major Jyotirlingas out of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva, then now your dream has become very easy. IRCTC has launched a special religious tour package for the passengers, in which darshan of 7 Jyotirlingas will be provided, that too with comfortable train journey, healthy and tasty food, safe place to stay and the most important thing is with the facility of EMI, that is, now you can be a part of this divine journey without putting much burden on the pocket.

Tour start and dates

This special journey will be by Bharat Gaurav Special Train, which will start from 18 November 2025 and will run till 29 November 2025. In this, Nakul, this will be a big religious journey of 11 nights and 12 days. The train will start from the yoga city Rishikesh, and during this journey you will see 7 famous Shiva Jyotirlingas of India.

Which Jyotirlingas will be seen

The holy places you will visit in this journey include Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain), Omkareshwar (Madhya Pradesh), Trimbakeshwar (Nashik), Bhimashankar (Maharashtra), Ghrishneshwar (Sambhajinagar), Somnath (Gujarat) and Nageshwar (Dwarka). Apart from these, during the journey you will also visit Dwarkadhish Temple, Signature Bridge of Dwarka, Panchavati of Nashik, Kalaram Temple, and local temples of Sambhajinagar, that is, you will get a chance to visit many religious and historical places in a single journey.

Package Types and Fares

For the convenience of passengers, IRCTC has divided this journey into three categories, the first of which is economy package. This includes sleeper class, double/triple sharing in non-AC hotels, non-AC buses. Its fare is Rs 24,100 per person and Rs 22,720 for children. The second one is the standard package. This includes 3 AC, stay in AC hotel, non-AC buses. Its fare is Rs 40,890 per person and Rs 39,260 for children. The third one is the comfort package. It includes 2 AC, AC hotel, AC buses and its fare is Rs 54,390 per person. All packages include breakfast, lunch and dinner and local sightseeing.

EMI and LTC facility

IRCTC has taken full care of the budget of the passengers. If it is difficult to pay the entire amount at once, then EMI option is also available. You can book this journey in easy installments of only Rs 847 per month. Apart from this, LTC facility is also applicable, which will provide further benefits to the government employees. EMI facility is available on IRCTC portal through both government and private banks.

You can book it on IRCTC portal through government or private banks. For online booking https://www.irctctourism.com/ Go to or you can also book by visiting IRCTC office, Paryatan Bhawan, Gomti Nagar located in Lucknow.

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IRCTC Travel Insurance: The number of people traveling by train in the country is in lakhs every day. Many of these people book tickets online. But while booking tickets, most people ignore an important option. This option can prove to be of great help in case of an accident. We are talking about travel insurance which is added for just a few rupees while booking tickets online.

Activating this option is very easy and its benefits can be very important in case of any accident. Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation i.e. IRCTC provides insurance cover to passengers for less than 45 paise while booking tickets. But many people forget to take this insurance. Let us tell you how you can take this insurance.

How to activate travel insurance

While booking a ticket, you fill the details on IRCTC website or mobile app. So an option of travel insurance appears. Many people don’t tick this box in a hurry. But this small carelessness can cause big harm in the future. Therefore, select this option every time before confirming the ticket.

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As soon as the insurance is activated, you get the policy details through email and message. If any accident occurs during the journey. So claim can be made on the basis of policy number. The claim process is also very easy and can be completed online. So next time when you book train tickets. So remember that it is important to click on the option of travel insurance.

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This much is claimed as claim

IRCTC Travel Insurance provides financial protection to passengers or their families if an accident occurs during train travel. Under this insurance, a claim of up to Rs 10 lakh can be received in case of death or permanent disability. In case of partial disability, an amount up to Rs 7.5 lakh is given. Whereas assistance up to Rs 2 lakh is available for treatment expenses. This policy is issued through government recognized insurance companies selected by IRCTC. In case of an accident, the claim process is easy and passengers or their families can apply online.

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IRCTC Cancellation Charges: Crores of people travel by train every day in the country. Many of these people like to travel by booking tickets. But many times people book tickets online. And the ticket is not confirmed. In such cases people get refund. But these days a different matter is in discussion on social media. A female user complained on social media that her ticket was automatically cancelled.

Whereas he himself did not cancel. Still they were charged cancellation charges. After this case, this question started arising in the minds of people that if IRCTC cancels your ticket on its own i.e. when your ticket is auto cancelled. Even then do you have to pay the charge? Know the rules.

If IRCTC cancels the ticket, will cancellation charge be charged?

If you have booked a ticket through IRCTC and it could not be confirmed i.e. it remained in the waiting list. So such tickets get automatically canceled. No cancellation charge of any kind is taken in this. In this situation, the entire refund is returned to the passengers’ account.

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If you booked an e-ticket and it remained waiting even after chart preparation. So the system auto cancels it. On such tickets, neither does the passenger need to do anything nor is there any deduction. However, there are different rules for Tatkal tickets. In which some clerkage charges can be deducted even if you do not get a seat.

When does cancellation charge have to be paid?

If you cancel the ticket yourself. So the charge has to be paid as per the rules laid down by the Railways. The charges for cancellation of confirmed ticket are decided according to the timing of the train. Normally Rs 120 for sleeper class, Rs 200 for second AC and Rs 240 for first AC can be charged.

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If the ticket is canceled 48 hours before the journey, the full charge is applicable. Then after that the refund amount gradually starts decreasing. So if you cancel the waiting ticket before the chart is prepared, then less money is deducted. But no refund is given after the chart is prepared.

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After Chhath Puja, when people start returning from their cities, huge crowd and chaos is seen at the railway station and bus stand. At this time the IRCTC website also does not work properly, due to which it becomes very difficult to get tickets immediately. This is the reason why many passengers are now thinking of going home by flight instead of train. However, despite the launch of special flights for the cities of Bihar and Eastern India, the prices of tickets have increased significantly, due to which travel is proving expensive for common passengers. In such a situation, if you want to book cheap flight tickets, then you can easily save money by adopting some smart tricks. Compare with rate comparison sites like MakeMyTrip, Yatra or Google Flights. Search incognito to avoid price gouging. Have flexible dates and timings — Tuesday and Wednesday flights are cheaper. Choose stopover flights, which are cheaper than direct It is cheaper by ₹2000-₹3000. Turn on Fare Alerts and keep an eye on the Social Media Accounts of Airlines. With these tips, you will be able to travel cheap and comfortably in this festival season.

IRCTC Booking Tips: Indian Railways is the lifeline of the country. Every day about 2.5 crore people travel through it. Through trains, people reach every corner of the country for work, study, travel or to go home. Now most of the passengers book tickets themselves through IRCTC website or mobile app, because it is an easy and time-saving method. But the problem arises when the ticket goes in the waiting list or a confirmed seat is not available during booking.

That too during festive seasons, the situation becomes more difficult. Even those who have fast internet sometimes miss the ticket. But if you make some preparations before booking and adopt some tricks. So the chances of getting a confirmed ticket increases significantly. Let us tell you the methods by which you can get your confirmed ticket.

Prepare master list first

While booking tickets on IRCTC, the maximum time is spent in filling the details of the passengers, in which many minutes are spent in entering the name, age, gender, ID number and birth preference and in this time the seat gets allotted to someone else. Therefore, if you prepare a master list in advance, your work will become easier. For this, you will have to go to My Profile section in your IRCTC account and go to Master List.

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In this you can save complete information of your family, friends or those for whom you often book tickets. Once the master list is created, all you have to do is select the name while booking the ticket. This will not only save your time but will also increase the speed of booking. Sometimes even a delay of a few seconds results in getting a confirmed ticket. Therefore this method is effective.

Save payment details

The most important step during ticket booking is payment. Many times, after filling everything, people get stuck at the payment gateway. Due to delay in receiving OTP, bank server down or time taken to enter details repeatedly, the ticket is lost. To avoid this problem, you can save payment details in advance. For this, IRCTC has provided the feature of Manage Payment Options.

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In this you can pre-save your trusted payment modes like UPI, Net Banking, Debit or Credit Card. By doing this there is no need to fill the details again at the time of booking. Just click on the saved option and the payment will be done immediately.

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