Kerala   

Clarification

The office of the Commissioner of Central Excise & Customs, Thiruvanathapuram, writes:

This is in response to the news report headlined ``Illegal courier to smuggle gadgets,'' that was published in The Hindu [Kerala edition] on May 28, 2007.

First of all, it is not true that the Transfer of Residence facility is given where goods in excess of the permissible limit is brought in by a passenger.

Where a passenger brings a substantial quantity of new items in excess of the individual's bona fide requirements, an offence case is booked after full examination of the goods and the excess goods are confiscated.

As is permissible under the law, such goods can be cleared by the passenger on payment of redemption fine and penalty.

It is observed that in most of the cases the passenger chooses to pay the fine and penalty which goes into the government's coffers.

Where the fine is not paid, the goods are confiscated absolutely.

This is the broad picture prevailing at Thiruvanathapuram.

Hence, the allegation in the article that smugglers are paying bribes to get clearances is not based on fact and may be instigated by smugglers and their sympathisers to tarnish the image of officers who are strict and fair while clearing baggage.

The high-value items such as LCD TVs are properly valued based on their condition and degree of use and are charged to the full duty. Agencies such as the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and Customs Preventive are also overseeing the clearances at Thiruvananthapuram and have not found any incorrect valuation or clearances.

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