Kolkata, Oct 24 The Border Security Force (BSF) has arrested a smuggler near the Indo-Bangladesh Border (IBB) with 1.4 kg gold.
The incident occurred at Ghojadanga in West Bengal's North 24-Parganas district. The gold, being smuggled from Bangladesh to India, has been valued at Rs 1.2 crore.
“Troops of the 102 Bn BSF, posted at the Ghojadanga Border Outpost, received intelligence inputs regarding an attempt to smuggle gold from across the border. The alert jawans kept a close watch on cross-border movement and stopped a motorcyclist whose actions seemed suspicious at the BSF Check Post near the busy Ghojadanga Land Port,” said Nilotpal Kumar Pandey, DIG and spokesperson, South Bengal Frontier, BSF.
He added that the motorcyclist resisted when the jawans attempted to search him. This was suspicious and he was taken to the Ghojadanga BOP, where the gold was found.
He said that a gold brick was found strapped with adhesive tape to the back of the man's shin. “There was also a piece of gold - apparently a part of another gold brick - in the man's wallet. The total weight of the seized gold was 1.4 kg,” he said.
“The smuggler broke down during interrogation and claimed that he had suffered huge business losses. In desperation, he got in touch with an unidentified smuggler from the Lakshmidhari village in the Satkhira district of Bangladesh, who offered him a lucrative deal that involved gold smuggling. Gold smuggling from Bangladesh can be lucrative, given the exchange rate,” he said.
He added that as the Bangladeshi Taka is weaker than the Indian Rupee, 1.4 kg 24-carat gold would have cost about Rs 1.03 crore in the neighbouring country.
“In India, this illegal gold could be sold for Rs 1.2 crore. This is a profit of Rs 17 lakh. Unfortunately for smugglers, the BSF stands in the way to prevent this loss of revenue, in the form of duties, to the Indian exchequer,” the official added.
Pandey commended the effort of the troops from Ghojadanga BOP and reiterated that the border population should report any information regarding gold smuggling to the BSF.
“They can call up the BSF's Seema Saathi Helpline at 14419 or share tips via WhatsApp at 9903472227. Those providing credible information will be adequately rewarded and the identities of all callers will be kept confidential,” the DIG said.
--IANS
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