Assam: Gauhati High Court directs CBI to investigate areca nut smuggling from Myanmar

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: The Aizawl bench of the Gauhati High Court has instructed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe allegations of cross-border smuggling of areca nuts from Myanmar into India through Mizoram's Champhai district.

With areca nuts smuggled from Myanmar going to places across India through Guwahati, law enforcement agencies are routinely making seizures here on the road and railway routes.

The order was passed recently by a bench comprising Justice Zothankhuma and Justice Marli Vankung while hearing a PIL filed by social activist Vanramchhuangi, where it was contended that fake or forged e-way bills and GST certificates were being used in the smuggling operations.

The order issued recently states that the offence pertains to commercial transactions for which a fair and impartial inquiry can be achieved only through an investigation undertaken by the CBI.

In her PIL filed at the Aizawl bench of the high court, Vanramchhuangi urged that the CBI be directed to take up the matter as the state government was playing a "passive role" in curbing the menace of smuggling of dry areca nuts from Myanmar into India through south Mizoram's Champhai district.

The issue of areca nut smuggling has been an ongoing hot topic in the state, with allegations being made of high-ranking authorities being involved and the reluctance of the state police to carry out any investigation in this regard.

The court observed that the issuance of GST Certificates and e-way bills by the C.G.S.T. and S.G.S.T. authorities for transportation of arecanuts from Champhai District to outside the district gives rise to the inference that rampant smuggling is taking place in violation of the Customs Act, etc., as there are no plantations yielding areca nuts in Champhai as of January 17, 2023, according to an additional affidavit issued by Mizoram's Home Department.

The bench directed the CBI to investigate the allegations of smuggling of dry areca nuts from Myanmar into India through Champhai District and the consequential transportation of the same on the basis of alleged fake or forged e-way bills and G.S.T. certificates.

Moreover, the court said, "This direction has been passed due to the stand taken by the state police that they are unable to investigate the said matter thoroughly as it involves international smuggling originating from Myanmar. Further, the offence pertains to commercial transactions for which a fair and impartial inquiry, amongst others, can be achieved only by an investigation undertaken by the CBI."

"Accordingly, the CBI shall investigate the matter and register a case, if necessary, and take it to its logical conclusion," the court ruled, accordingly disposing of the PIL.

 Also Read: Mizoram: Areca nuts worth Rs 52.64 lakh recovered in Champai (sentinelassam.com)

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