The Customs Department at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) in Mumbai has uncovered a major gold smuggling operation and seized gold worth more than ₹1.78 crore. Four individuals, including two passengers arriving from Dubai and two alleged receivers, have been arrested in connection with the case.
Officials said the seized gold weighed around 1,550 grams and was cleverly concealed inside the socks of the passengers in the form of gold dust mixed with wax. The contraband, valued at ₹1,78,26,165 in the international market, was intercepted on the evening of 12 November 2025 following specific intelligence inputs.
Customs officers stopped two Indian nationals — Nitin Kumar Premchand Panchal and Kalyani Mukesh Panchal — who had arrived from Dubai on IndiGo flight 6E1452. During the initial baggage check, no suspicious items were found, but a personal search led to the discovery of four small pouches wrapped in grey cello tape and hidden inside their socks. The pouches contained gold dust that had been compressed into a wax-like paste to avoid detection.
Following interrogation, the duo revealed that two people were waiting outside the airport to collect the smuggled gold. Acting swiftly, officials detained the suspected receivers, identified as Gondaliya Lalitkumar Chhaganlal and Ramji Kumhar. A government valuer later confirmed that the recovered substance was 24-carat gold dust in wax form.
All four accused were booked and arrested under Section 104 of the Customs Act, 1962. Advocate Prabhakar Tripathi, representing the accused, alleged that the Customs Department inflated the total value by merging the two separate recoveries—700 grams and 750 grams—to cross the ₹1 crore threshold and convert the bailable offence into a non-bailable one. He further argued that the two alleged receivers had no gold in their possession and were merely present to greet the passengers.
Customs officials, however, informed the court that the two passengers admitted to carrying the gold for a payment of ₹25,000 and ₹10,000 respectively. The department described the case as part of a larger organised smuggling network and said that the investigation remains in its initial stages.