IT was sudden and surprising. On 17th September 1974, the President of India issued an ordinance empowering the authorities to arrest and detain smugglers under Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) up to a maximum period of two years. The ordinance took immediate effect.
What was the need for such an ordinance? Prior to the issue of the ordinance, the anti-social activities indulged in by smugglers had reached the high-level mark. Accumulation of black money and unaccounted wealth and its abuse to disrupt national economy, the evasion of income tax, customs levies and other revenue dues, and the large-scale corruption practiced at all levels of commercial life highlighted in the various parliamentary discussions. There was need to put a stop to all this.
Soon after the issue of the ordinance the police with their enforcement powers declared war on smuggling and smugglers. They arrested several leading Smugglers e.g. Bhakia, Mastan, Yusuf Patel and others. Within a fortnight more than two hundred top smugglers were put behind bars. The ordinance was necessary to take the smugglers by surprise.
The crack-down against smugglers was mainly aimed at closing up of one of the main loopholes for generations of black money, seepage of foreign exchange, violation of import and export controls and evasion of taxes, customs levy and revenue dues at various points. Contraband goods and smuggled goods have been confiscated, and transactions of the same have been banned. The war on smuggling also forms ‘a part of the government’s drive against Inflation. Smuggling is not merely a matter of unlawful and illegal import of unauthorized and scarce goods for sale at enormous profits but is a process which cuts through the very root of the economic activity of the nation.
Following the crackdown against smugglers the prices of all essential Commodities came down. With the smugglers behind bars the rupee also gained in value in unofficial exchange markets against the dollar, pound, sterling and other foreign currencies. We must, therefore, heed the appeal of the Prime Minister and co-operate with the Government to make war smuggling a great success.