New Delhi: After news of a hawker being arrested from Surat for allegedly mimicking politicians while selling toys on trains created a huge row, the railway ministry has come up with a detailed response.

The ministry clarified that he wasn't booked for mimicking but for unauthorised sale of products on the train. The ministry stated, "RPF Surat arrested Shri Avdesh Dubey during a drive against unauthorised persons and registered a case vide CR  no 1228/19 under section 144 (A), 145 (B), 147 of the Railways Act and was produced before the court".

The statement further added, the hawker was a repeat offender who was caught in similar drives at least 11 times before. Out of the 11 times, seven times he was caught by Valsad Post and four times by the Surat Post of the RPF.

"The defaulter himself confessed to the magistrate that he has been doing unauthorised hawking in trains since 2005," added the railway ministry statement. The repeat offender has been awarded 10 days of imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 3,500.

But interestingly, it was widely reported that the vendor Dubey was arrested for mimicking politicians after his videos imitating netas was widely shared on social media. But the reality appears to be otherwise.