A Kalol resident was held for trying to sneak in gold jewellery, foreign currency and goods worth Rs30 lakh without declaring them.
Customs officials at the city’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport arrested a man on Saturday morning with gold, US dollars and electronic goods, all worth Rs30 lakh.
The officials became suspicious about the passenger, Vishnu Shiva Prajapati, who arrived at the city airport from New York on a Qatar airlines flight at 5 in the morning.
A customs official said that the 35-year-old resident of Kalol had travelled abroad earlier too. For this reason, there was no way he could have been ignorant about the rule which makes it mandatory for passengers to declare gold, electronic goods as well as currencies in excess of $5,000, the official said.
When officials checked Prajapati’s baggage, they found 700 gm of gold, $9,884 foreign currency and electronic goods. The gold is worth Rs22lakh while the dollars are worth around Rs5 lakh. The electronic items were worth around Rs3 lakh, the customs official said.
“The passenger had been abroad before and knew very well the rules that make it mandatory for him to declare the goods,” said a customs official who is investigating the matter. The official said that the rule about declaring currency in excess of $5,000 dollars is in place to prevent hawala transactions. “If a passenger declares the currency he is carrying we know where it is coming from and where it is going,” said the official.
Customs officials said that thanks to the depreciating rupee, they are vigilant about passengers trying to bring gold without paying duty.
“In the last two to three months we have seen a rise in such cases. Due to the depreciating rupee, the cost of gold has shot up in India. Moreover, in international markets jewellery making charges are not as high as in India.
Hence, buying gold jewellery abroad turns out to be a cheaper option,” said the official. They are also investigating if the man had brought such consignments earlier too.
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