KARACHI: Customs Today provided details regarding smuggling of banned items like betel nuts, dangerous chemicals, etc. from Karachi East Collectorate under the protection and facilitation of Dost Muhammad. The Principal Appraiser of R&D department, Dost Muhammad has all the data available to him based on which he can stop this smuggling happening through green channel, yellow channel and TP from the port.
Sources said Customs intelligence department got activated on these reports and raided a godown at SITE area, Karachi. In this single raid they found more than 600,000kgs of betel nuts valuing more than Rs. 1.5 billion. If one single godown raid could get such huge quantity and high worth of banned goods then experts say that throughout Pakistan there would be hundreds of such godowns where such banned goods worth hundreds of billions can be traced out. The department writes that these goods are ‘visibly of poor quality, infested and unfit for human consumption’. Hence, the damage to Pakistan is not only of hundreds of billions of rupees rather millions of people in the country are losing their health or life after consuming these hazardous substances.
Sources said FIR was lodged by Customs Intelligence and further Investigations were carried out in detail. 19 persons are held accused after the investigations. But it is a surprise that all these 19 persons are private persons and none of the customs departments’ own persons have been named! How is it possible that a scam of such a huge nature takes place on regular basis at the Karachi East Collectorate where all the data is available with Dost Muhammad of R&D department, and still the Customs staff monitoring and clearing these goods at the ports are not named as accused in the mega scam? The management of the collectorate is not in the hands of private persons rather it is under the control of Customs staff where Dost Muhammad has all the data at R&D.
Sources said Customs intelligence department is also a department of Customs staff and R&D Dost Muhammad is also from Customs staff. One staff of customs is saving the other staff of Customs here.
Sources said during the investigations, many of the accused persons have actually mentioned on record, as available in the interim charge sheet, that they have cleared the goods from Karachi east collectorate. They have mentioned many Goods Declaration (GD) numbers starting with alphabets ‘KAPE’. When the GD number starts with alphabets ‘KAPE’ then it means ‘Karachi Appraisement East’. The accused have also provided GD copies to intelligence which states clearly the name as ‘KAPE’. This implies the hazardous betel nuts were cleared at Karachi east collectorate under the protection of Dost Muhammad as he had all the data available but did not stop these betel nuts which according to intelligence department are ‘visibly of poor quality, infested and unfit for human consumption’.
Following accused persons mentioned on record, as available in the interim charge sheet, that they have cleared the goods from Karachi east collectorate:
- Accused in attached interim challan, Abdul Ghani Ronjha S/O Muhammad Yaqoob is partner of M/S Kiran Food Products imported betelnuts from Karachi East Collectorate having GD Number: KAPE-HC-105324 Dated 13.12.2017
- Also Ms/ Aruba Traders imported Betel Nuts from Karachi East Collectorate having GD Number: KAPE-HC-56809 Dated 25.09.2017 as presented by Abdul Ghani of Kiran Food Producers.
- Accused in attached interim challan, Mushtaq Ali Tejani S/O Rehmatullah Tejani is proprietor of M/S Saarim Enterprises imported betelnuts from Karachi East Collectorate having GD Numbers: KAPE-HC-24193 Dated 02.08.2017, KAPE-HC-46533 Dated 09.09.2017
- Accused in attached interim challan, Muhammad Zubair S/O Zamir-Ud-Din Tejani is proprietor of M/S Zubair Corporation imported betelnuts from Karachi East Collectorate having GD Numbers: KAPE-HC-46011 Dated 08.09.2017, KAPE-HC-46533 Dated 09.09.2017
- Accused in attached interim challan, Shahzad Tejani S/O Feroz Ali Tejani proprietor of M/S Feroze Products imported betelnuts from Karachi East Collectorate having GD Number: KAPE-HC-34312 Dated 24.08.2017
- Accused in attached interim challan, Ghulam Mehdi Nayani S/O Barkat Ali proprietor of M/S Al-Abbas Industried imported betelnuts from Karachi East Collectorate having GD Number.: KAPE-HC-92760 Dated 23.11.2017
- Accused in attached interim challan, Muhammad Ali S/O Muhammad Jamil proprietor of M/S Aruba Trading imported betelnuts from Karachi East Collectorate having GD Number: KAPE-HC-56809 Dated 25.09.2017
- Accused in attached interim challan, Farheen Irfan W/O Muhammad Irfan proprietor of M/S Rohain Corporation imported betelnuts from Karachi East Collectorate having GD Number: KAPE-HC-98842 Dated 05.12.2017
Sources said Customs staff is not ready to legally proceed against Dost Muhammad as he is their colleague though involvement of Dost is obviously proved through documents and statements of so many persons in the case. The only option here is that NAB takes up the case and investigates the role of Dost and other customs staff in this smuggling of betel nuts. Only an independent investigation of NAB can solve the matter for our beloved country and protect us from such huge loss of lives and revenue.