Lucknow, October 10 (TNA) The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), with assistance from the Railway Protection Force, seized 1.202 kg of suspected foreign-origin gold worth around ₹1.72 crore from a passenger at Lucknow railway station, officials said.
The passenger was intercepted on October 8 after he deboarded the Vande Bharat Express on platform number five at Charbagh railway station. The train, numbered 22489, was travelling from Varanasi towards Meerut.
During the search, officials recovered six pieces of high-purity gold, including three chains, half of a bar and two small cut pieces. The total value of the seized gold was assessed at ₹1,72,34,373. According to the DRI, the passenger had concealed the gold in a specially stitched pocket beneath a knee cap that he was wearing.
He allegedly failed to produce documents establishing lawful possession of the precious metal. Investigators suspect that the consignment had been transported from Howrah to Lucknow through Varanasi. To evade detection, the passenger allegedly avoided travelling directly to Lucknow and changed trains at Varanasi or Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction.
The seized gold was taken into custody under the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962. The passenger has been arrested, and the DRI is investigating the suspected interstate smuggling network and the people linked to the consignment.
The operation was carried out on the basis of specific intelligence inputs regarding the movement of foreign-origin smuggled gold. Further investigation is under way to identify the source of the gold and its intended recipients.