Indian cricketer Krunal Pandya, wife detained at Mumbai airport with undisclosed valuables

Mumbai: Indian cricketer Krunal Pandya and his wife Pankhuri Sharma were detained at the Mumbai airport on Monday, as the cricketer was carrying four luxury watches whose receipts he allegedly did not have.

According to the Indian media, the couple was detained on their arrival from the UAE high-end for carrying expensive watches worth an estimated Indian Rs7.5 million on arrival. The watches had not been declared to the relevant authorities.

Authorities said Pandya was carrying four watches — two of them were Rolex watches while the other two were of the brand Audemar Piguet. The cricketer was part of the Mumbai Indians team that won the IPL final played last month in Dubai. 

Indian media report said that two of the watches were meant for him while two were for his brother Hardik, who travelled to Australia with the Indian team.

An Indian official said authorities called over valuers to assess the worth of the luxury watches. “It was also ascertained that the watches were not duplicates,” a local daily Times of India said.

Officials said the watches have been seized and the couple will be allowed to go. 

The watches will be released only after a show-cause notice is issued followed by an adjudication where the fine and penalty will be levied, which will be around 60% of the value of the watches, sources told the publication.

Last year, Indian cricketer Krunal Pandya and his wife were detained at the Terminal 2 of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) for carrying an undisclosed high-end watches and gold.