Rahat freed but faces currency probe

Rahat and two members of his troupe have not been allowed to take their passports with them.


Aditi Phadnis February 15, 2011

NEW DEHLI: A visibly shaken Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and two members of his troupe – Maroof, his manager and Indian event manager Chitresh Shrivastava — sped out of the dingy offices of the Indian Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) late Monday evening after nearly 30 hours in detention. None of the men were allowed to take their passports with them though.

The previous day Rahat was stopped from boarding an Emirates flight out of India bound for Karachi after an airport scanner revealed more than $124,000 both in his accompanied and unaccompanied luggage.

In his defence, Rahat said he was a school dropout and therefore did not understand Indian laws which require passengers flying out of the country to declare currency and travellers’ cheques in excess of $10,000.

The three men will have to appear for questioning within the next three days. Contrary to some media reports, Rahat was not arrested but merely detained and extended full cooperation with the authorities during that time.

Initially, Pakistan High Commission sought consular access to the three men but was told that access would be provided when questioning was over. Three high commission officials came to the zonal headquarters of the DRI where questioning of the singer was under way but left after about 30 minutes, sources said.

While Rahat and the other two were being interrogated, searches were conducted simultaneously on the premises of “Eyeline Telefilm and Events” in Mumbai, owned by Shrivastava. He is the elder brother of Bollywood singer Aadesh Shrivastava.

A top police official told The Express Tribune from New Delhi that if the information gathered by the DRI is correct and it was on the basis of intercepted telephone calls that Rahat was stopped as he was about to leave India, he “could be in a lot of trouble”. Information with law enforcement agencies suggests that Rahat, who is a regular visitor and performer in India, may have carried money abroad illegally at least twice earlier and for this reason, came under the scanner of the customs department. “Customs doesn’t really stop anyone unless they have prior information. In this case, it was telephone calls made on Rahat’s phone. Investigations are continuing,” the sources said.

They added that money laundering drug money, money belonging to terrorist groups and hawala (smuggling) are the three punishable categories of currency smuggling crimes. If Rahat was attempting to take money out from India in any of these categories, and if the government has evidence, he can be arrested in the next few days.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 15th, 2011.

COMMENTS (31)

Uza Syed | 13 years ago | Reply @Adnan: Completely and wholeheartedly agree with Adnan, cheating and criminal acts have become habitual among Pakistanis, especially, the Pakistani elite. All these crooks like this criminal must be restrained and taught a lesson to abide and respect the laws, I am glad that Indians have decided not to be too lenient on crime and criminals. Good job!
Sana | 13 years ago | Reply Mahesh! They go to India when they are invited.Simple! Why they are invited in the first place if you guys have such great singers to boast about? Truth is you don't have. That's why your directors look towards Pakistan. However i am sure that from now on, Pakistani singers will learn from Rahat's experience.
VIEW MORE COMMENTS
Replying to X

Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.

For more information, please see our Comments FAQ