Bhutan vehicle smuggling probe deepens; Kochi Customs arrests five in Operation Numkhor

Kochi: The investigation into the illegal smuggling of vehicles into India from Bhutan has taken a new turn with the first arrest under Operation Numkhor, carried out by Kochi Customs Preventive Unit. Shri Bishwadeep Das, a resident of Jalpaiguri in West Bengal, was arrested jointly by Kochi Customs and the Customs Preventive Unit in West Bengal.

Bishwadeep Das, who was arrested in late February, was initially remanded to judicial custody and later shifted to Kochi. Officials suspect that he is one of the key masterminds behind the vehicle smuggling network. He is reportedly a senior engineer in an IT company.

Apart from Bishwadeep Das, four people from Assam were also arrested: Deepak Patowari (57), Ayub Ali (35), Mustafa Ahmed (35) and Jalal Mandal (31). The arrests were made by Kochi Customs Preventive with the assistance of the Shillong Customs. During an investigation conducted by Assam Police, it was found that the accused had registered 460 vehicles using forged documents. Deepak Patowari is currently serving as a District Transport Officer in Assam. He is being questioned jointly by officials from the Customs Department and the Central GST Department.

According to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), a total of 15,849 vehicles have been registered in the northeastern states using identical chassis and engine numbers. These include both foreign-made vehicles and Indian-manufactured vehicles that were illegally smuggled into India without paying customs duty and later registered using forged documents. The vehicles involved include cars and lorries.

Through Operation Numkhor, authorities have uncovered multiple vehicle-smuggling networks operating across India.

As part of the operation, the Kochi Customs Preventive Unit had seized 36 vehicles last year, including those belonging to film personalities. Most of the owners failed to appear with proper documents. Customs officials have found that between 150 and 200 vehicles were smuggled into India from Bhutan, and nearly 90 per cent of their documents were found to be forged.