India's Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted a transnational smuggling network that illegally imported more than 7,300,000 kilograms of Pakistan-origin rock salt by routing shipments through Sri Lanka and using forged trade documents to conceal their origin.
Four people have been arrested in connection with the case, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday.
Under Operation Deep Manifest, the DRI detected 295 containers carrying 7,311 metric tons of industrial and Himalayan rock salt, with an estimated value of Rs. 104.5 million in Sri Lankan currency.
The consignments were routed through Colombo port in Sri Lanka, while fabricated certificates of origin and invoices issued by United Arab Emirates-based entities were allegedly used to disguise the goods as originating elsewhere.
The imports violated India's prohibition on goods originating in or exported from Pakistan, the ministry said.
OPERATION ACROSS EIGHT LOCATIONS
Acting on specific intelligence, the DRI conducted a coordinated operation between September 26 and October 11, searching premises linked to the suspected network in Gandhidham, Adipur, Veraval, Panipat, Pune, Patiala, Delhi and Mumbai.
The investigation found that nine importers had brought in the 295 containers through Mundra and Kandla ports since March 2026.
Of the total consignments detected, five containers carrying 140 metric tons of industrial and Himalayan rock salt, valued at Rs. 8.48 million in Sri Lankan currency, were seized at Kandla port. The agency also seized sales proceeds worth Rs. 7.3 million in Sri Lankan currency held in the importers' bank accounts.
FORGED DOCUMENTS USED TO HIDE PAKISTANI ORIGIN
According to the Ministry of Finance, preliminary investigations have uncovered an alleged cross-border network involving entities owned by Pakistani, Emirati, Sri Lankan and Indian nationals. According to the ministry, the entities allegedly coordinated shipments and supporting paperwork to conceal the Pakistani origin of the rock salt.
Fabricated invoices issued by Dubai-based firms were used to support the transactions. However, shipping documents and customs declarations in Sri Lanka reportedly revealed details that contradicted the paperwork submitted by the importers in India.
Bills of lading for the Pakistan-to-Sri Lanka leg of the shipments, along with declarations filed with Sri Lanka Customs, explicitly identified Pakistan as the country of origin and India as the final destination.
The certificates of origin submitted by the importers were found to be fabricated, the ministry said.
Certificates of origin are trade documents used to establish where goods were produced or manufactured.
Such documents can determine whether a shipment is eligible to enter a country under its import rules. In this case, the falsification was intended to conceal the goods' Pakistani origin and circumvent India's import restrictions.
The DRI has arrested four people under the Customs Act, 1962, in connection with the smuggling operation.
Those arrested include two proprietors or partners of importing firms, a holder of a Customs Broker's G-card, and the owner of a Dubai-based supplier. The last-named individual had also established and operated an importing firm in his father's name, according to the ministry.
PREVIOUS CRACKDOWN ON PAKISTANI DRY DATES
The latest operation follows another crackdown by the DRI last month, when it seized more than 362,000 kilograms of Pakistan-origin dry dates packed in 13 containers.
The consignments had been imported by a Mumbai-based firm and were seized at a container freight station in Ambad, Nashik.
The two cases point to attempts to bring Pakistani-origin goods into India through indirect routes despite the existing prohibition.
Following the Pahalgam terror attack in April 2025, the Indian government imposed a complete ban on the direct or indirect import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan. The restriction was imposed on grounds of national security and public policy.
The DRI said it remained committed to identifying and dismantling such networks and protecting India's economic and national security interests.
Source: India Today
-Agencies
