Ranchi, May 23: Rampant misuse of first-class AC passes issued to MPs’ spouses has compelled the Railway Board to seek photographs of bona fide life partners of the parliamentarians.

MPs are entitled to get free AC first-class pass for themselves and their spouses. They also get a free AC two-tier ticket for a companion. But the Railway Board believes 80 per cent of wives or husbands of MPs travelling with the Parliamentarians in the AC first-class compartments are impostors.

Let alone women impostors, many male companions of MPs travel with tickets booked for the wives of the parliamentarians, sources in the railway vigilance directorate in Delhi said.

“There is pure democracy and socialism in misusing the facility since MPs from all parts of India and political parties travel with impostors,” sources added.

After having downloaded photographs of sitting MPs from the Internet, the Railway Board is in the process of evolving strategy to track MPs who travel with impostors. But as photographs of spouses of MPs are not available on the Net, it would soon to write to the Parliament to make available their photographs, railway officials said.

Ranchi senior divisional commercial manager Vivek Shrivastava confirmed that TTIs of Ranchi division had been provided with the photographs of local MPs on the directive of the Railway Board. But, he was not sure if the lower-rung railway employees had enough guts to check the identity of an MP.

“An MP has an identity card and the Parliamentarian can book a ticket for self and his or her companions on phone by quoting the number of the I-card. If the MPs are given waitlisted tickets, it is the responsibility of the Railways to grant them ber- ths from the emergency quo- ta even if no requisition is sent.

So, under the prevailing circumstances, it is very difficult for a TTI to check the identity of a person travelling as an MP,” Shrivastava said. Besides, the TTIs move alone unlike the vigilance board sleuths who are with police force while conducting surprise raids, he added.