Cricket World Cup 2011 – Customs Captures the Trophy
INDIA'S Little Master said that he grew up dreaming that one day he would be able to hold the World Cup Trophy and he did that on Saturday in Mumbai. But did he? Was he holding a fake trophy while the real one was held by the Customs officers of Mumbai Airport?
The Indian Customs is embarrassingly shy about their achievements – we tell the Customs that we will only be too happy to give publicity to the good deeds (if any) of the Customs, but it is so difficult to get any information from them. After a huge seizure of drugs in an airport, DDT called up a Chief Commissioner for information about the seizure. This is how the conversation went,
DDT: Sir, I hear that there has been a huge seizure of drugs in the airport; any information that you would like to share with the public?
Chief Commissioner: Yeah, I also heard something like that, but I have no information for you.
But when it comes to getting a bad name, the Customs will not let any opportunity go by.
The greatest sporting event was unfolding in Mumbai's Wankhade stadium and an ICC official flew in to Mumbai airport with the World Cup Trophy, which was promptly detained by the Customs. The Press all over the world reported this and the tragedy was the Press reported that the Customs Officers agreed to release the trophy if they were given tickets for the match. The ICC official gave them the shock of their lives and asked them to keep the trophy as there was another version of the trophy already in the stadium.
So while Dhoni&Co were holding one version of the World Cup, the Mumbai Customs was holding another! And all this confusion when the ICC President is an important Minister in the Indian Cabinet. Surely SharadPawar could have got an exemption for the trophy and any number of replicas.
And Customs should have released the trophy – maybe under Customs supervision – that way at least a couple of Customs officers could have entered into the Wankhade Stadium in a right royal way!
Now it is reported in the World Press that the Indian Customs detained the duplicate trophy for tickets for the Match.
Pakistan's Daily Mail reported, “WC Trophy impounded for tickets - Customs officers at Mumbai airport confiscated what they thought was the cricket World Cup trophy in a dispute over unpaid duty - officers were confused when they were told to keep the trophy until after the final, when the ICC would take it back to their headquarters in Dubai. They were unaware that there were two identical trophies and the other had been at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium for the last month awaiting the winning captain ”
Dubai's Gulfnews reported, “Customs capture World Cup trophy - The World Cup trophy has been detained at Mumbai's ChhatrapatiShivaji airport for non- payment of duty. Customs officials have admitted they detained the trophy even though it has to be handed over to the winner. But, it seems, the joy of their conquest was short lived. The International Cricket Council claim they already have the original trophy. ”
Eurosport.com reported, “The officials, who believed the trophy to be the original gold and silver prize, valued at around USD 130,000 (£80,000), demanded tickets to the World Cup final between India and Sri Lanka in order to waive the $50,000 (£31,000) import duty. ”
Australia's Sydney Morning Herald mentioned, customs officers at the city's airport even offered to waive import duty on a replica of the World Cup trophy in return for seats at the final .
Was it necessary for the Customs to go that extra mile to get all this bad publicity all over the world?