Over 30kg gold found in diplomatic bag in TVM airport, a first-of-its-kind seizure

Thiruvananthapuram: Customs officals have seized a large cache of gold from the most unlikely of places: in a bag that came as diplomatic cargo at Thiruvananthapuram international airport. This is the first time that gold has been found smuggled using a diplomatic baggage in Kerala.

Sources said the gold was found concealed in a baggage containing sanitaryware meant to be delivered to a diplomat in the UAE Consulate in Manacaud, Thiruvananthapuram.

Sources said over 30kg of gold was found, making it the largest gold haul in Thiruvananthapuram airport. Last year, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence had seized 25kg of gold in a raid.

The diplomatic cargo had arrived three days ago. It was put on hold after the Customs officials received a tip off saying that gold was concealed in a parcel addressed to the UAE Consulate. The Customs have begun a hunt to track down the person who had despatched the cargo.

As per the Vienna Conventon on Consular Relations, to which both India and the UAE are signatories, the officials in foreign Consulates have been conferred certain privileges or immunity. The person, bags, vehicles or even their buildings cannot be subjected to any kind of checks. The diplomats and their cargo are to be given safe passage.

"If the Customs has decided to search a diplomatic cargo, they would have made it doubly sure that there was contraband in the cargo. Or else, it could be disastrous for them," a top Customs official said. "The diplomatic cargo cannot be searched on a whim either. They will have to get the go ahead from the Ministry of External Affairs and also from the UAE Embassy," the official said.

Earlier, too, gold had been found stashed in the accompanied baggage of diplomats working in various foreign embassies in Delhi. "It has been generally found that diplomats are careless about their baggage and that their immunity was being exploited by others in the office to sneak in gold," the official said.