C Unnikrishnan TNN
Mumbai: In one of the heftiest penalties imposed on smugglers in the recent past,red sanders smuggling kingpin Ajit Satam and his aide Deepak Jare have been directed to pay Rs 110 crore and Rs 70 crore,respectively.
Satam had allegedly masterminded the September 2011 smuggling of 13 containers carrying 200 tonnes of red sanders worth Rs 50 crore from JNPT.The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) had intercepted the consignment and arrested Satam,his partner Jare and their aides.This was followed by another seizure of 45 metric tonnes from Kolhapur.
A showcause notice was then issued to Satam,Jare and nine others who helped them in the smuggling operations.In his order,customs commissioner Manoj Krishna upheld the DRIs charges and imposed a collective fine of Rs 183 crore on all of them,including Rs 180 crore on the two prime accused.
The DRI had also seized Rs 14 crore found in Satams bank account,his eight high-end carswhich included labels such as Bentley,Ferrari,Mercedes and BMWand Rs 2.5 crore from Jares Nerul flat.Now,the adjudicating authority (customs commissioner ) has ordered that these,too,will become government property.
Satam was arrested in September 2011 and subsequently released on bail.In April this year,he was detained for a year under Cofeposa.The Bombay high court rejected his plea to quash the detention.On Tuesday,the Supreme Court released him on bail but did not quash the detention.
Satam,a Class XII dropout,started as a customs house agent.In 2004,he was first arrested for red sanders smuggling;he was detained under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act (Cofeposa) in 2008.After his release,Satam resumed his smuggling activities with the help of Jare,the showcause notice said.
On every container of red sanders smuggled out of the country,Satam earned Rs 2 crore.He invested this money in real estate and bought high-end luxury cars and spent money lavishly, it was pointed out.Satam had paid Rs 50 lakh to producer Susi Ganeshan to make a movie.The money lying in her account would now go to the government.
Ajit Satam (left) and Deepak Jare
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