The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday carried out extensive searches at the residences and offices of Malayalam film icons Mammootty, his son Dulquer Salmaan, and actor Prithviraj Sukumaran in connection with a luxury car smuggling racket allegedly operating across Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
The coordinated raids — unusual for being accompanied by a public statement from the central agency before their conclusion — come just a day after Dulquer moved the Kerala High Court challenging the Customs Department’s seizure of his Land Rover Defender.
According to the ED, the searches were conducted under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999, across 17 locations spanning Ernakulam, Coimbatore, and Chennai. One of the sites under search was Dulquer’s residence on Greams Road in Chennai, where a three-member ED team was stationed throughout the day.
The Alleged Racket
Investigators allege that a Coimbatore-based syndicate smuggled luxury vehicles such as Toyota Land Cruisers, Land Rover Defenders, and Maseratis into India through Bhutan and Nepal using forged import documents and hawala networks. These vehicles were then sold at undervalued rates to high-net-worth individuals, including several film celebrities.
Officials stated that preliminary findings revealed the use of fake documents purportedly issued by the Indian Army, the US Embassy, and the Ministry of External Affairs to obtain fraudulent Regional Transport Office (RTO) registrations in states like Arunachal Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. Once registered, the vehicles were re-sold within India to unsuspecting buyers.
The ED’s statement noted, “Prima facie violations under Sections 3, 4, and 8 of FEMA have been detected, involving unauthorised foreign exchange dealings and hawala transactions. Further investigation is underway to trace the money trail, beneficiary network, and forex movement.”
The Customs Operation and Legal Battle
The ED’s raids follow weeks of scrutiny by multiple enforcement agencies. On September 23, the Kochi Customs (Preventive) Commissionerate launched ‘Operation Numkhor’—a name derived from the Bhutanese word for vehicle—and seized 37 high-end cars suspected to have entered India through the Indo-Bhutan corridor.
Among those impounded were vehicles registered to Dulquer Salmaan and actor Amit Chakkalakkal. The Customs Department has maintained that these cars were imported illegally without paying due duties.
On Tuesday, Dulquer’s plea before the Kerala High Court challenged Customs’ seizure of his Land Rover, asserting that he purchased the vehicle in good faith nearly five years ago through legitimate banking channels, backed by customs clearances, invoices, and delivery notes. He claimed the vehicle’s original importer was the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), New Delhi.
Justice Ziyad Rahman A A observed that under Section 110A of the Customs Act, provisional release of seized goods is a legal right, and if Customs denies it, the department must issue a detailed “speaking order” addressing the petitioner’s submissions.
During the hearing, the court questioned the basis of Customs’ seizure, remarking, “What evidence do you have? No information even in sealed cover. You are denying a person the use of property purchased with his money.”
Prominent Targets and Political Undercurrents
In Kochi, the ED also searched Mammootty’s long-time residence “Mammootty House” in Kadavanthra, alongside the homes of businessmen and dealers allegedly connected to the racket. Prithviraj Sukumaran’s properties were also under the scanner for possible links.
The involvement of Mammootty’s family has added a high-profile dimension to the case. Dulquer, one of South India’s most successful actors with a strong presence in Hindi and Tamil cinema, now finds himself at the centre of an intensifying federal probe.
Interestingly, the ED issued a detailed press release even before concluding the raids, a move that raised eyebrows among legal observers. Agency sources indicated that the decision was deliberate, seeking to pre-empt speculation and counter criticism that earlier searches were conducted without transparency.
A senior source familiar with the investigation noted, “In the previous phase, officers faced pushback for speaking too soon. This time, the agency wanted to make its position clear — that the investigation concerns a larger cross-border network, not an isolated case involving one celebrity.”
As searches continued late into Wednesday evening, officials hinted at possible summons and interrogations of several individuals, including luxury car dealers, financiers, and transport agents allegedly linked to the Coimbatore-based syndicate.
For now, Kerala’s film industry remains on edge — its most celebrated names under the glare of one of the biggest enforcement crackdowns in recent memory.
