A Bihar student visiting Varanasi was allegedly overcharged for a plate of chole bhature, being asked to pay Rs 120 instead of the promised Rs 20. After he complained to the police at the station, the vendor was made to refund the money. The viral video of the incident has ignited discussions online about overcharging at railway stations.
A dispute over the cost of a plate of chole bhature at a train station has gone viral after a Bihar student claimed that a food vendor had charged him six times what he had been told. Discussions over alleged overcharging by railway station vendors have resurfaced as a result of the event, which was captured on camera at Varanasi Cantonment train station.
The student, identified as Pintu Kumar from Bihar, travelled to Varanasi to take an exam, according to the widely shared video. He claimed that for Rs 20, a hawker provided him a plate of chole bhature with six bhaturas. But the seller allegedly wanted Rs 120 after he had finished his meal.
The student then went up to the police officers who were on duty at the train station. An officer can be seen in the footage asking him to describe what transpired.The student claims he was promised the lunch would cost Rs 20 but was then asked to pay Rs 120. He says, "Rs 20 ka chole bhature bolkar chhah piece diye aur Rs 120 le liya."
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He added that he was not the only one impacted and that a number of other Bihar students who had been to the city for exams had encountered same problems. "Hum log Bihar se exam dene aaye hain. Kai students se bhi liya hai," he says in the clip.
The footage depicts police officers interviewing the seller about the allegation. During the interaction, the officer questions why clients are supposedly being charged more than the indicated amount. The vendor, appearing apologetic, assures the police that such an incident would not happen again. The officer then directs him to return the excess amount collected from the student.
"Rs 20 ka samaan bolke Rs 120 le rahe ho, ye theek hai? Iska paisa wapas karo," the officer is heard saying before asking the vendor to issue a refund.
The student was subsequently given back the money in the presence of the police.
Watch Viral Video
Internet Reacts
Social media users expressed varying perspectives on the disagreement, the vendor's pricing, and the police response as soon as the incident gained publicity. 23eew
Numerous people supported the student and demanded that overcharging at train stops be prohibited. Others, however, questioned the viability of selling a plate with six bhaturas for Rs 20 in 2026.
One user wrote, "20 rs me kon khila raha 6 bhature 2026 me?", suggesting the quoted price itself seemed unusually low.
Another person said, "Mai waha mosambi ka juice bola," after having a similar encounter at the station. Sale ne bada glass diya 40 wala, phir ek glass aur de diya usi mein. Main socha 40 mein 2 glass dega. Maine pi liya, par 80 rupya charge karne laga."
Such behaviours, according to several comments, were not exclusive to train stops. A user said, "Poore Varanasi ke restaurant me ye cheating chalti hai aur kayi restaurant me khane ki price list he nahi hai."
