Rise in smuggling after customs rule change

Chennai: When Ramanathapuram resident Mohammed Hyder (28) reached Chennai airport in a Thai Airways flight from Bangkok last Wednesday, he concealed gold from the customs department and walked through the green channel pretty sure that he would not be arrested even if found guilty.

The agile customs sleuths apprehended the passenger who was carrying 600 grams gold, worth Rs 18 lakh, hidden in his rectum. But he walked out free after paying the fine, as the department now arrests only passengers who smuggle offending valuable goods exceeding Rs 20 lakh.

It is not only Hyder but also many more who now try to either carry illegal gold or bring in electronic goods without declaring them, but within the Rs 20 lakh bracket.

The customs department has apprehended 41 passengers concealing gold worth less than Rs 20 lakh each since September this year, compared to only 24 cases in the same period last year.

“The customs rules were revised recently and from September this year, we make arrests only if the value of goods is Rs 20 lakh,” said Chennai airport and air cargo’s customs commissioner Sanjay Kumar Agarwal.

He added that the rules were fixed in 1998 and since inflation has skyrocketed in the last few years, the Rs 5 lakh ceiling was increased to Rs 20 lakh. The customs department would now confiscate goods worth below Rs 20 lakh but not file a criminal case against the carrier. The passenger has to pay the duty and penalty to get his goods back.

Noting that the modification in rule wouldn’t bring about any big change in smuggling activities, Agarwal said a passenger, when arrested, could come out on bail if the value of goods is less than Rs 1 crore. Only offences above Rs 1 crore are non-bailable.

However, Agarwal added that the department would keep tabs on wrongdoers and in case of repeated offence, when the total value exceeds Rs 20 lakh, he or she would be arrested.