Nine arrested over areca-nut imports that avoided India's 100% tariff; searches in Visakhapatnam
India charges a 100% customs duty on areca nuts unless they come from a South Asian free-trade partner. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence says syndicates brought in nuts grown in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia while declaring them Bangladeshi. On 16 August 2026 the Ministry of Finance announced nine arrests, searches in Kolkata and Visakhapatnam, and the seizure of 160 tonnes of areca nuts and Rs 75 lakh in cash.
This page records what the cited court, tribunal and government records say happened. Findings belong to the court or authority that made them; this register adds none of its own. Names of private individuals are withheld unless a naming gate clears them.
How we verify →Nine arrests announced on 16 August 2026; investigation continuing. No court has ruled.
What happened
According to the Ministry of Finance, imports of areca nuts attract Basic Customs Duty of 100%, but nuts that qualify as Bangladeshi under the South Asian Free Trade Area rules of origin are fully exempt.
The DRI said syndicates imported nuts 'originating and sourced from Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and other South-East Asian countries' while declaring Bangladesh as the country of origin. After a month-long operation, officers carried out simultaneous searches at premises linked to importers, customs brokers and IEC holders in Kolkata and Visakhapatnam.
The release says officers seized about Rs 75 lakh in cash, 'believed to be sale proceeds', and a live consignment of about 160 tonnes of areca nuts; nine people were arrested and a customs broker's licence was suspended. The DRI puts the duty avoided 'in recent years' at more than Rs 2,500 crore.
What the Ministry of Finance said
“Thereafter, simultaneous searches were conducted at multiple premises linked to importers, Customs Brokers and IEC holders in Kolkata and Visakhapatnam.”
PIB release, Ministry of Finance, 16 August 2026 — read the full text
A farm product behind a 100% wall
Areca nuts are a legal farm product. The offence alleged is paying no duty by claiming a false origin; the loser is the exchequer, not any private person. This register documents such cases because the tariff wall is what makes ordinary trade a crime. The DRI calls it fraud on the exchequer, and no court has yet decided the case.
What we could not confirm
The release does not give dates, crime numbers, the places of arrest or how much of the activity took place in Andhra Pradesh; the Andhra Pradesh link is the searches in Visakhapatnam. The Rs 2,500 crore figure is the DRI's estimate of duty avoided.