Kochi: Customs department has started investigation into the discrepancies in the weight and number of Qurans, which were said to have been brought to the UAE consulate through diplomatic channels.
The diplomatic baggage, which was sent in the name of the UAE consulate general on March 4, weighed 4478 kg, as documented in the airway bill. There were 250 packets in total, which means that each packet weighed around 17.912 kg.
When the customs department weighed a sample of the religious text that was in the possession of Minister Jaleel, it weighed 576 grams. Customs said that in this case, there could have been 31 religious texts in each packet.
There is a difference of 14 kg between the weight recorded in the bill and in the sample testing done by the customs department. There is still a lack of clarity regarding what constituted that extra 14 kg. This will be investigated by the department.
It is reported that there were 992 religious texts in the packets that minister Jaleel brought to Malappuram. If the weight of the package documented in the airway bill is taken into consideration, there should have been 7750 texts. Customs are investigating what happened to the remaining 6758 texts. Out of the 250 packets that reached the airport, 32 were taken to the C-apt office in Thiruvananthapuram.
It has been made clear that without the approval of the centre, even consulates cannot import religious texts or distribute them. Meanwhile, Swapna Suresh has admitted to the investigating team that she accepted commission for these transactions with the consulate.
KT Jaleel stated through Facebook that UAE embassies and consulates distribute religious texts in all countries in connection with Ramzan. He also said he is willing to return the texts to the consulate if the centre mandates that these religious texts should not be distributed.
