Chennai Customs summons Telangana minister's son in luxury watch smuggling case
Chennai (PTI): The Chennai Customs has issued a summons to Ponguleti Harsha Reddy, the son of a Telangana minister, for his alleged involvement in the smuggling of high-end watches worth several crores of rupees, according to official documents.
Reddy was asked to appear on April 4, but in a letter dated April 3, he expressed his inability to show up, stating that he is recovering from dengue fever, Customs sources quoting the letter said.
However, he has agreed to appear before the department after April 27, as per medical advice, official sources said.
Speaking to PTI, Reddy said that he had nothing to do with the case. "It is completely baseless. I am unwell right now," said the son of
Telangana’s Revenue and Housing Minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy.
The summons dated March 28 was sent to the office of a family-owned firm in Hyderabad in which Harsha Reddy is a director.
The smuggling case was booked by Customs on February 5 when two luxury watches—Patek Philipe 5740 and Breguet 2759—were seized from a Hongkong-based Indian Muhammed Faherdeen Mubeen, who came to Chennai from Singapore.
The original value of the watches was estimated by Customs to be Rs 1.73 crore; the Patek Philipe has no dealer in India, while the Breguet is out of stock in the Indian market, an official press release by Customs said.
According to investigations by Customs, Harsha Reddy has been allegedly identified as the buyer of the watches from Mubeen through an intermediary Alokam Naveen Kumar, who was interrogated by Customs on March 12, sources said.
During interrogation, Naveen Kumar has revealed that he acted as an intermediary between Harsha and Mubeen, a luxury watch dealer, and facilitated payments for the transaction through USDT-a form of cryptocurrency- and cash, using the hawala route, Customs sources claimed, quoting Kumar's statements during questioning.
When contacted by PTI, Harsha Reddy categorically denied these allegations, terming them "baseless".
In his response to the Customs summons, Harsha Reddy said that he was surprised and denied knowledge about the case, sources said.
However, he has agreed to appear before the department after April 27, as per medical advice, official sources said.
Dismissing an anticipatory bail petition moved by Naveen Kumar, the Madras High Court in its order on March 18 said that the amount involved in the overall smuggling of luxury watches over a period might be more than Rs 100 crore, based on a perusal of records.
During a review of the case by the Alandur court here, the Judicial Magistrate on April 1 directed Customs to investigate Harsha Reddy and arrest Alokam Naveen Kumar, Customs sources said.
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Schools in Mizoram's nine districts closed due to rain
Aizawl (PTI): All schools in nine districts of Mizoram remained closed on Tuesday due to heavy rain that has been lashing the northeastern state since the day before, an official said.
School Education Director Angela Zothanpuii said administrations of nine districts, including Aizawl, Kolasib, Lunglei and Mamit, announced school closure on Tuesday as a precautionary measure for students' safety.
However, schools in the southern districts of Hnahthial and Lawngtlai remained open following a slight improvement in weather conditions there, she said.
According to the India Meteorological Department, Serchhip recorded the highest rainfall at 70.5 mm in a 24-hour period, followed by Hnahthial 55 mm, Siaha 37.5 mm, and Aizawl 36 mm.
Khawzawl district reported 30 mm of rainfall, Mamit 25.9 mm, Kolasib 25 mm, Lawngtlai 17.5 mm, and Lunglei 2.2 mm during the same period, it said.
The weather department has forecast light to moderate rainfall with thunderstorm and lightning in Mizoram on Tuesday.
