A 44-year-old woman from an affluent family, caught for travelling ticketless, on Tuesday chose to go to jail for seven days instead of paying a fine of Rs. 260, saying the authorities should first arrest and recover the loan dues from liquor baron Vijay Mallya.

Premlata Bhansali, a mother of two, who lives in the plush Bhuleshwar area in south Mumbai, was caught by a woman ticket checker on Sunday at the Mahalaxmi station of suburban network.

Asked to pay up the fine of Rs. 260, Ms. Bhansali, according to the Railway Police, said they should first arrest Mr. Mallya who owed the banks over Rs. 9,000 crore.

“She was produced in the magistrate court and asked to pay the fine. But she declined and chose to go to jail for seven days,” said Anand Vijay Jha, senior Divisional Security Commissioner of the Mumbai division, Western Railway.

“She spent nearly 12 hours arguing with railway officials, demanding to know why the authorities were going soft on Mr. Mallya and harassing the common man,” said a Railway Protection Force officer. — PTI