DRI busts international diesel-smuggling racket

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted a diesel-smuggling racket and seized around 264 million tonnes of diesel from the possession of four people who smuggled it from Dubai to Chennai under the guise of mineral spirit. The four were later arrested.

Diesel is a restrictive commodity for import as per the foreign trade policy and only state-owned oil marketing companies are allowed to import it.

DRI seized the diesel from the Chennai port, where the consignment was declared as mineral spirit, sources said.

Sources said that diesel was being smuggled into India by certain "operators" based at Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh and Chennai.

"Searches conducted on April 17 at two container freight stations in Chennai revealed that 14 containers imported at Chennai port in the name of M/S SAF Petroleum and M/S Aditya Marine landed at Sanco CFS, Chennai and Gateway CFS, Chennai, where the goods were declared as mineral spirit. These containers were found to be actually carrying 263.78 mt (3 lakh litre approximately) of diesel," they said.

Simultaneous searches have been conducted on 12 places in Kakinada and Chennai.

The arrested persons revealed that dummy companies were set up in Dubai to purchase diesel and bring that to Chennai by creating false invoices.

It was found that in the past these operators had imported about 63 lakh litres of diesel valued at Rs 17.7 crore.