Mundra Drug Seizure | DRI records Adani Ports statement under NDPS Act

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The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has recorded the statement of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) over the seizure of nearly 3,000-kg of heroin from Gujarat’s Mundra Port, the finance ministry said on November 30.

APSEZ is the operator of Mundra Port, where a total of 2,988.21 kg of heroin, worth over Rs 20,000 crore, was seized on September 13. This is reported to be one of the largest ever seizures across the world.

Congress MP KC Venugopal raised a query in the Rajya Sabha, seeking a confirmation from the government over the drug seizure. He also requested the finance ministry to clarify whether any notice was issued or action taken against the port operator.

“DRI has seized 2,988.21 kg of narcotic substance (Heroin) at Mundra Port on 13.09.2021,” Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said. “DRI recorded a statement of the port operator under the NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act, 1985, and the case has been taken over by the NIA (National Investigation Agency).”

Also Read | Here’s why the Mundra drug seizure is a cause of concern

On another sub-question by Venugopal, which sought to know what steps would be taken in the future to prevent the use of ports for illegal activities, the MoS Finance replied: “Customs formations, including DRI, keep constant vigil and take action in accordance with the law whenever such illegal activities are detected.”

The consignment of heroin that was seized at Mundra Port had originated from Afghanistan. It was shipped from the Bandar Abbas Port in Iran.

Following the seizure, a number of raids were conducted in different parts of the country, leading to the arrest of eight individuals, including an Uzbek and an Afghan nationals.

APSEZ, which had come under criticism following the drug haul, had slammed the accusations being hurled at it. “No port operator across the country can examine a container. Their role is limited to running the port... APSEZ is a port operator, providing services to shipping lines. We have no policing authority over the containers or the millions of tonnes of cargo that pass through the terminals in Mundra or any of our ports,” it said.

“We sincerely hope that this statement will put to rest the motivated, malicious and false propaganda being run on social media against the Adani Group,” the statement said.

On October 11, APSEZ had decided that it will not handle any cargo originating from Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan from November 15.