Is the 9:54 AM Thane-CSMT local even a "Thane Special" anymore?

Hey guys,

I’m not a regular local train commuter, but I had some work in town a couple of days ago and decided to take the 9:54 AM Thane-CSMT slow train. Since it originates from Thane, I figured taking a second-class ticket would be fine and getting a seat would be easy.

Big mistake.

When the train rolled into the platform, the seats were already 100% occupied. Nobody got down. I ended up chatting with a co-passenger who told me this is standard practice now: basically, a ton of office-goers from Mulund board this train while it’s coming in the down direction, just to block seats for the return journey to CSMT.

No hate to the Mulund folks—I actually live in Mulund myself and I know how brutal it is to board an Up train from there during peak hours. Desperate times, desperate measures.

But honestly, isn't this totally unfair to Thane commuters? The whole point of starting a train from Thane is to give the crowd here a break. If people are "back-boarding" and pre-booking the entire train before it even officially starts its journey, it completely defeats the purpose of a Thane special.

Does this happen on all Thane starting trains now? Has Central Railway ever tried cracking down on this reverse traveling, or have we all just accepted it?