Hardik Pandya Customs row: Cricketer issues clarification, says broke no laws
Pandya clarified that he voluntarily went to the Mumbai airport customs counter to declare the items bought by him and that he had paid whatever duties needed to be paid.
FollowCricketer Hardik Pandya has issued a statement after reports emerged that customs officials had recovered luxury watches worth Rs 5 crore from his possession after he arrived in India from the United Arab Emirates.
According to reports, the incident happened when the Team India players arrived home from UAE after their dismal outing at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, on Monday morning. Reports said that the all-rounder allegedly did not have invoices for the watches and that he had not declared these watches as customs items. The watches were confiscated, reports claimed.
ALSO READ:Â Hardik Pandya, Natasa Stankovic, Agastya celebrate festive season in Dubai
However, on Tuesday morning, Pandya clarified that he voluntarily went to the Mumbai airport customs counter to declare the items bought by him and that he had paid whatever duties needed to be paid.
Dismissing the allegations being levelled on social media, Pandya clarified that he had voluntarily declared all items that he had lawfully purchased from Dubai and that he was ready to pay whatever duties were needed to be paid. He also revealed that the cost of the watch was Rs 1.5 crore and not Rs 5 crore as is being speculated.
At present, Mumbai Customs is doing the valuation for duty which the cricketer has already confirmed to pay. Stating that he was a law-abiding citizen who respected government agencies, Pandya said he has assured his complete cooperation to the Mumbai Customs department and provided them with all the legitimate documents, including purchase receipts, as sought by them to clear the matter. He went on to assert that the claims about him crossing legal boundaries are unfounded.
Also Read:Â Hardik Pandya's son Agastya enjoys playful outing with Natasa
Â
