Euros in post parcel - Aishwarya Rai cleared?

By Vijay Kumar

Customs officers quizzed glamour queen Aishwarya Rai yesterday and reported to have given her a clean chit at least as of now. There was no clue as to who sent her the money, which the Customs has to now investigate. It seems Aishwarya was interrogated in the airport instead of the Custom House. This has created a controversy. Can the summoned person have the choice of the place where he/she is going to be questioned? Long ago a Commissioner summoned ITC chairman Deveshwar to a remote small town, not connected by air. His request for hearing in a nearby city was not considered. Coming back to Aishwarya, was she shown any special consideration? No, says Customs officers – “after all in the airport also there is a customs office and we did not go to her house to record her statement” – is their view, while her advocate believes that she should not have been summoned in the first place!