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Outgoing customs officer hits out at Kerala govt over gold smuggling case
Outgoing customs commissioner Sumit Kumar said there were several interventions during the probe, but he ignored them with the contempt they deserved.
Outgoing customs commissioner Sumit Kumar on Saturday criticised the Kerala government, alleging that there were many attempts to intimidate and run him down during his tenure.
Kumar was part of the investigation on gold smuggling through the United Arab Emirates’ consulate.
He said there were several interventions during the probe, but he ignored them with the contempt they deserved. He added that the state police often overlooked complaints of the central agencies.
“Though there were many pulls and pressures, I never allowed anyone to browbeat us. My reporting officer is not the CM or the state government. Investigation in the gold smuggling case is going in the right direction now,” he said.
Denying reports that appeared in a section of the media that he was under tremendous pressure from the Centre, he said: “People who have no idea about central agencies are making such wild allegations. It is also weird to say the central agencies are being used to portray the state government in a bad light. We are bound by customs rules and regulations.”
