In the city of diamonds, gold is the talk of the town. Surat Airport has become a hub of gold smuggling, as more than 20kg of gold have been seized in the last four years. 

Sanjay Izawa, president of the Surat Airport Action Committee (SAAC), filed an RTI (Right to Information) and raised suspicions of a possible nexus between the Surat Police and Customs and the Surat Airport.

The information sought under the RTI query revealed that despite the limited frequency of only three flights a week between Sharjah and Surat, gold smuggling cases often make appearances at the airport.

Gold worth ₹10 cr seized

In 2019-20, 6,799.12 gm of gold was seized, 282.60 gm in 2021-22, 8,955.78 gm in 2022-23, and till Aug 2023, 4,356.69 gm was seized. 

A total of 20,394.19 gm worth ₹10 cr, which sums up to more than 20 kg of gold, was seized from the Sharjah-Surat flight.

It seems that Sharjah-Surat flights have become a preferred method for smuggling gold. In 2019-20, gold was seized 14 times, one time in 2021-22, 17 times in 2022-23, and 9 times until Aug 2023. In the last four years, a total of 41 cases  of gold being smuggled were reported from only one airport in Surat.

No FIRs against the perpetrators?

As per the revelations of the RTI, no FIR was filed in any of these 41 smuggling cases over the past four years, according to the assistant commissioner of the customs department at Surat Airport. There are a total of 13 customs officials who are currently stationed at Surat Airport to work alongside local police officials.

In the recent arrest, Parag Dave, an immigration police sub-inspector (PSI), was accused of smuggling gold from Surat Airport. This raised suspicions of the involvement of the top brass.

However, this revelation has  also hinted that not only PSI-level officials but multiple masterminds might have been involved in these cases.

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