Customs authorities at Benapole land port have seized a large consignment of Indian hilsa imported under a false declaration. Three and a half tonnes of undeclared hilsa were brought in with other freshwater fish in the shipment.

Traders allege that the examining officer may have colluded in the falsely declared consignment. Because they are perishable, the other fish were released, but the hilsa were confiscated.

The consignment was stopped on the night of 13 January at Benapole port's No 31 transhipment yard, acting on a tip-off. Suspicion arose while goods were being unloaded from two Indian trucks (WB-25 Ka-3029 and WB-11 U-5027), and a physical examination was carried out in the presence of senior Benapole customs officials.

The declaration listed "sweet fish" – boal, foli and baghair – but the examination found Indian hilsa in 54 of the 225 packages. The hilsa weighed three and a half tonnes, with a market value of about Tk 30 lakh. Because of the clear mismatch between the declaration and the goods, the whole consignment was seized immediately.

The hilsa were imported through legal channels under a false declaration by an importer named Jannat Enterprise; the exporter was RJ International. The C&F agent Link International, owned by the much-discussed Shanta, was trying to move the hilsa out of Benapole port while evading duty. Working together, the parties concealed the nature of the goods in the declaration in an attempt to clear high-value, regulated goods at a lower duty.

Benapole land port traffic inspector Shahdat Hossain said the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) first came to the yard on Tuesday night to search on a tip-off, followed a little later by senior customs officials. When the fish trucks were opened, three and a half tonnes of Indian hilsa were found among the other fish.

Benapole Custom House commissioner Mohammad Faizur Rahman said a clear mismatch was found between the declaration and the actual goods, which is a serious breach of customs law. The matter is being investigated seriously, and the importer, the C&F agent and everyone else involved are under investigation.

He added that if any customs officer or employee is found by the investigation to be involved in such irregularities, strict action will be taken against them under the law and rules. "There will be no leniency in this matter."

Port sources said duty evasion by a section of corrupt traders has caused a revenue shortfall of Tk 1,013 crore in the first six months of the current financial year. Among the identified duty evaders, C&F businessman Shanta is much discussed. It is alleged that a section of corrupt customs officials is close to these irregularities, and that large bribes and monthly payments are taken against each consignment. The seizure of hilsa worth about Tk 30 lakh is real proof of those allegations, the sources said.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.