The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has busted a multi-crore money laundering racket at the Bharat Diamond Bourse in Mumbai and arrested four people.
The DRI had recently held searches at BDB following a tip-off, and intercepted consignments of “low quality” rough diamonds with a declared value of ₹156 crore.
Cut-and-polish traders in BDB had allegedly imported rough diamonds from Hong Kong at highly inflated prices to transfer black money abroad.
A statement from the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council said the investigations of the DRI had exposed the ₹3,000-crore scam. “It is unfortunate that a group of people who are not members of GJEPC have used gem and jewellery products as a conduit for money laundering,” it said. “We have sensitised the government on large over-valuation of several imports from Hong Kong, along with proof. In fact, persons from GJEPC acted as whistle-blowers in uncovering the malpractice.”
The government had recently imposed an import duty of 0.25 per cent on rough diamonds.