Rahul Gandhi accused PM of crony capitalism after surge pricing applied to Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Duronto

Highlights Surge pricing for popular trains begins tomorrow

Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal attack government over higher fares

Price hike limited to 50% of base fare, says government

Rahul Gandhi, who is campaigning in Uttar Pradesh, today said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not been able to deliver faster trains but has been quick to introduce more expensive fares.The government has announced that starting tomorrow, tickets on three popular trains- the Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duranto - will be determined by surge pricing.Though fares in the most expensive coaches will not change, surge pricing for sleeper classes will be capped at 1.5 times the base fare -a maximum hike of 50%.Critics point out that unlike taxi hire apps like Uber, the Railways has a complete monopoly, the surge pricing kicks in relatively early- when 10% of the tickets have been sold, and that even if demand is low, prices won't fall."The speed of trains might not increase, but PM Modi has increased the speed of surging fares. He takes from the poor and gives to his industrialist friends," Mr Gandhi alleged on Twitter.

The 46-year-old Congress Vice President has made accusing the PM of crony capitalism a political habit. He earlier coined the phrase "suit-boot ki sarkaar" to deride the government as one in thrall to industrialists.Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who journeyed from Delhi to Ludhiana today on a Shatabdi, has said, also on Twitter, that the government must withdraw the flexi-fares system that is being introduced ahead of the festival season.