Kerala Minister Jaleel appears before Customs

Kochi: Kerala Higher Education Minister KT Jaleel on Monday appeared before the Customs in connection with the alleged violation in accepting consignments of Quran imported by UAE consulate officials in Thiruvananthapuram for personal use, sources said.

Visuals aired by news channels showed the minister reaching the office of the Customs (Preventive) Commissionerate here in his official vehicle at around noon to appear before the sleuths probing the case.

Last week, the Customs had summoned Jaleel to appear before it on Monday as part of its investigation into the alleged violation in accepting consignments of Quran imported by UAE Consulate officials in Thiruvananthapuram for their personal use through the diplomatic channel.

Jaleel was earlier questioned by the NIA probing the terror angle in the Kerala gold smuggling case.

He was also questioned by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the alleged violation of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) in accepting consignments of Quran brought from UAE through diplomatic channels.

The Customs department has registered two cases in connection with allegedly accepting consignments of the Holy Quran and thousands of kilograms of dates imported by the UAE consulate officials for their personal use through diplomatic channels.