Customs officials conduct searches in Minister Ponguleti's son watch smuggling case

HYDERABAD: Customs officials from Chennai conducted searches in three areas of Hyderabad on Thursday in connection with a smuggling case involving Harsha Reddy, son of Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy. The officials, who carried out inspections for about six hours, reportedly seized many valuable documents.

Harsha Reddy's name surfaced in the investigation of a smuggling racket involving watches worth Rs. 1.7 crores. On February 5, customs officials seized two expensive watches at Chennai airport. The preliminary investigation revealed that Mohammad Faherdeen Mubeen brought the watches to India from Hong Kong via Singapore.

The seized watches were identified as Patek Philippe-5740 and Breguet-2759. The Patek Philippe brand has no official dealers in India, and Breguet watches are no longer available in the market. Officials were shocked by the high value of the watches. Mubeen, who was transporting the watches, was arrested and interrogated. He claimed to have brought them for a man named Naveen. When Naveen was questioned, Harsha Reddy's name emerged as a key figure in the smuggling operation. Officials suspect Naveen Kumar acted as an intermediary for Harsha Reddy, facilitating the import of the watches. Customs sources allege that the payment for the watches was made through hawala and partly in cryptocurrency, specifically Tether (USDT).

Customs officials had previously issued notices to Harsha Reddy, summoning him to appear on April 4. However, Harsha Reddy responded in writing on April 3, stating he was suffering from dengue fever and would attend the hearing after April 27. Since then, he has not attended any hearings, prompting officials to come to Hyderabad. Searches were conducted in Jubilee Hills, Banjara Hills, and other areas.

Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy and his son Harsha are yet to make an official statement regarding the alleged searches by the Customs Department.