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Delhi: The Delhi High Court has imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on the Customs Department, taking a tough stand in the case of confiscating a woman’s personal jewellery at Indira Gandhi International Airport. The court termed this action as unfair, illegal and insensitive and strictly directed the Customs Department to return the jewellery within two working days without any storage charges.
The family was harassed as soon as they returned from the trip
Petitioner Pooja Seth had filed a petition in the Delhi High Court demanding the return of her personal jewellery. She told that she had gone to attend a wedding ceremony in Bangkok with her husband and children on January 16 and returned to India on January 20.
During this time, the Customs officials at IGI Airport not only stopped her but also confiscated her gold jewellery, due to which her entire family went through mental torture. The seized jewellery included four stone-studded gold bracelets (78 grams), a gold bracelet (45 grams), and a gold chain and pendant (67 grams).
Court reprimands illegal act of Customs Department
The bench of Justice Pratibha Singh and Justice Rajneesh Kumar Gupta reprimanded the Customs Department in this case and said that the seizure of the petitioner’s gold jewellery was completely illegal and improper. It was his personal property and there was no justification for seizing it.
The Delhi High Court, accepting the evidence presented by the petitioner Pooja Seth, said that the seized jewellery was part of his family heritage, which he had received from his grandmother. He also presented old photographs and a copy of the will in the court to prove this. The court made it clear that this arbitrariness of the Customs Department is a blatant violation of the rights of common citizens and will not be tolerated.
Statement taken under forced pressure – Petitioner
The Delhi High Court, raising serious questions on the behavior of the Customs officials, said that they forcibly got the petitioner to sign a statement in which she was asked to accept that she is ready to pay the fine and penalty and is giving up the right to a show cause notice or personal hearing.
The court termed it serious and said that it clearly appears to be a statement taken under pressure. Disciplinary action against the concerned customs officer is mandatory.
Permission given to petitioner to file affidavit
The court said that if the petitioner wishes, she can file an affidavit regarding the misbehavior with her and her family at the airport. The court indicated that if the arbitrariness of the customs officers is not curbed, then more stringent steps can be taken in the future. The next hearing of the case will be on April 15.
