AAP Leader's Wife Slams "Deplorable" Meal On Tejas Express, IRCTC Says "No One Else Complained"

Anita Singh, wife of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh, recently expressed her dissatisfaction with the quality of food served on the Tejas Express, a premium train operated by Indian Railways. Taking to the social media platform X, she shared a photograph of the meal in question and voiced her concerns, criticising the roti for being papad-like, the paneer for being stale, and the dal for being watery. Her post questioned the standards of service promoted by the Tejas Express, which is marketed as a high-end, modern rail travel experience.

She wrote on X, "The food served on the Tejas Express was utterly deplorable. The roti was as hard as papad, the paneer was stale, and instead of dal, only water was served. Is this the railway's "world-class" service? Stop playing with passengers' health," and tagged the Railway ministry and Ashwini Vaishnaw. 

Here's the tweet:

PNR No 2338310371
तेजस एक्सप्रेस में मिला खाना बेहद घटिया था। रोटी पापड़ जैसी सख्त, पनीर बासी और दाल की जगह सिर्फ़ पानी परोसा गया।

क्या यही है रेलवे की “वर्ल्ड क्लास” सेवा? यात्रियों की सेहत से खिलवाड़ बंद हो!

माननीय @AshwiniVaishnaw जी, कृपया संज्ञान लें।@RailMinIndia pic.twitter.com/v0t0bbwwWE

— Anita Singh (@AnitaSingh_) July 11, 2025

In response, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) issued a prompt reply, stating that meals are inspected before serving and that no other passenger had complained. However, they acknowledged the feedback and assured that appropriate measures would be taken to address the issue.

"Concerning the feedback regarding catering services provided by you on 11/07/25 in the New Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express train, we wish to inform you that the quality of the food is checked before serving, and no complaints in this regard have been received from other passengers in the said coach; rather, the catering has generally been appreciated. The catering team available on the train attended to you and also offered a replacement meal. Nevertheless, taking your feedback seriously and to further strengthen the quality, a senior official has been appointed to ensure compliance with all standards, and appropriate guidelines will be ensured accordingly," the reply by IRCTC read. 

महोदया,

आपके द्वारा दिनाँक 11/07/25 को नई दिल्ली -लखनऊ तेजस एक्स्प्रेस ट्रेन में खानपान संबंधित फीडबैक के संदर्भ में अवगत कराना है कि भोजन की गुणवत्ता जाँच परोसने से पूर्व की जाती है और उक्त कोच से किसी और यात्रीगण की इस संबंध में कोई शिकायत प्राप्त नही हुई है, अपितु…

— IRCTC (@IRCTCofficial) July 12, 2025

This incident has sparked discussions on social media about the consistency of food quality on premium trains like the Tejas Express, with some users sharing similar experiences and others defending the railway's efforts to maintain standards. Many were also not satisfied with IRCTC's response.

One user said, "@ IRCTC, what kind of ridiculous answer is this? Improve your service, don't blame the person who is raising a complaint.@RailMinIndia What kind of people have you appointed for consumer complaints.... pathetic."

Another commented, "This reply from IRCTC exposes the rot within the system. Overcharging for meals and water is rampant across trains, not just one. Passengers complain, but your staff turns a blind eye every time . Instead of fake justifications, fix your corrupt food contractors."

A third user added, "IRCTC, you can't run away from your responsibilities, as this is a routine to offer poor quality food to passengers. Recently, I travelled from Bhopal Shatabdi problem was the same. People don't complain as they know nothing will improve."