Rajkot: A major racket involving scrapped fishing boats illegally returning to the sea was busted in the coastal district of Devbhumi Dwarka, with police claiming that this illegal activity was not just maritime rules violation but a national security threat.Since June 13, the police arrested 21 people and identified 93 such deregistered boats whose fake ownership was created through bogus documentation like purchase invoices and GST numbers. The boats were condemned to scrap after outliving their lives, making them unseaworthy.The racket was thriving since 2022.Police officials said most buyers were fishermen who did not want to spend heavily on purchasing new boats or those who wanted to avail of govt subsidies. Two of the arrested persons, natives of Okha town, are masterminds of the racket, while others are buyers.However, investigators emphasised that if any such vessel is used in anti-national activity, its ownership would be impossible to trace due to the fake paper trail.Fishing vessels are deregistered as per the criteria fixed by the state fisheries department. The law also mandates that fishing boats must be registered with the fisheries department by providing valid documents, including purchase invoices, engine number, and others.“Upon verification, we found that the GST numbers of the purchasing firms mentioned in the boat invoices were those cancelled by the GST department. Further checks confirmed that the invoices and e-way bills were forged,” said Devbhumi Dwarka Superintendent of Police (SP) Nitesh Pandey.He explained: “This is like issuing two RC books for the same vehicle. While it may appear as a simple case of forgery, it poses a serious national security threat. If such boats are used for smuggling drugs or weapons, tracking the real culprits becomes extremely difficult.”The boats being registered fraudulently were condemned vessels meant for scrap.Highlighting the vulnerability of Gujarat’s coastline, particularly in Porbandar and Dwarka, a senior official said these areas have been misused for anti-national activities—from the arms landing ahead of the 1993 Mumbai blasts to infiltration during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack using fishing boats.“Several drug consignments have also been seized in recent years. The coastline is sensitive, and ensuring proper registration and record-keeping of fishing boats is critical for coastal security,” the officer said.Police are probing the loopholes in the fisheries registration system that were exploited by the scammers and identifying those who helped facilitate the creation of fraudulent documents.
