In a major crackdown, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has arrested two brothers from Surat, Gujarat, involved in a large-scale customs duty evasion scheme. The accused, Sachin Kundaliya (28) and Pratik Kundaliya (32), were allegedly involved in the import of walnuts through misdeclaration, resulting in a customs duty evasion amounting to Rs 5.6 crore.
The arrest followed a targeted search at Gayatri Exim, a Surat-based company owned by the Kundaliya brothers. The company had been importing inshell walnuts from Chile, but instead of presenting legitimate invoices from the Chilean supplier, the brothers routed invoices through UAE-based firms to undervalue the goods. This false documentation allowed them to evade significant customs duties.
Evidence uncovered during the investigation, including emails and original invoices from Chile, confirmed the discrepancies in the declared value of the imports. The misdeclaration was discovered to have involved a series of transactions through UAE-based entities, helping the brothers hide the true value of the goods.
The Kundaliya brothers have also been linked to previous instances of evading customs duties, with an estimated Rs 20 crore in duties evaded over the past import activities. It was revealed that hawala channels had been used to settle the differential amounts in these fraudulent transactions.
Despite the mounting evidence, the brothers’ legal counsel, Advocate Sujay Kantawala, has argued that the accused were unaware of the irregularities and are not responsible for the actions taken under their business operations.
The DRI is continuing its investigation, which could uncover further details of the customs duty evasion activities. The accused have been remanded into custody as the probe into the broader network intensifies.
