A high-profile crackdown by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has unearthed a sprawling luxury car import fraud spanning across India. At the heart of the ₹100 crore customs evasion racket is Hyderabad-based car dealer Basharat Khan, who allegedly ran an illegal operation to smuggle high-end vehicles using forged documents and political clout.
A Dealer of Dreams and Deceit
Basharat Khan, the flamboyant owner of Hyderabad’s high-end car dealership Car Lounge, is now at the center of a massive customs duty evasion case. Arrested in Gujarat by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Khan is accused of masterminding a luxury car import racket that bypassed over ₹100 crore in customs duties. His modus operandi involved undervaluing high-end vehicles through fake invoices and routing them via third-party countries like Dubai and Sri Lanka to obscure their true origin and value.
According to investigators, Khan specifically targeted vehicles from the United States and Japan, rerouting them to jurisdictions where modifications could be made notably converting left-hand-drive cars to right-hand-drive to meet Indian regulatory standards. Once modified, the cars were shipped to India under forged documentation that misrepresented their market value and condition.
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Exotic Cars, Fake Bills, and a Farmhouse Full of Evidence
The DRI has so far identified 30 illegally imported luxury vehicles, with eight of them directly linked to Khan. These include some of the most exclusive models rarely seen on Indian roads a Rolls-Royce, Cadillac Escalade, Hummer EV, Lincoln Navigator, Toyota Land Cruiser, and a Lexus among them. These were reportedly sold to affluent clients, many of whom allegedly paid in unaccounted cash to avoid taxes.
Khan’s alleged accomplice, Dr. Ahmed, is said to have stored several of these illegally imported cars at his private farmhouse, shielding them from scrutiny. The sprawling farmhouse, located on the outskirts of Hyderabad, was raided by DRI officials, who discovered vehicles worth crores, hidden in sheds and garages.
Officials claim Khan’s operations were backed by a network of political patrons and well-connected clients, who enabled the fraud to flourish without detection for years. Invoices were allegedly forged abroad, with the connivance of overseas suppliers and middlemen, making it challenging for customs to trace the true origin and valuation of the imports.
A National Web of Illicit Luxury
The case has widened to multiple cities, including Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, and Delhi, where similar shipments are under investigation. Khan, who has been in the luxury vehicle business for over a decade, built a loyal clientele, including influential figures, by offering rare automobiles at below-market prices. These undercut rates were made possible only through systematic undervaluation and document forgery.
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Sources close to the investigation suggest that the DRI is now probing several high-end buyers to determine their role in facilitating or benefiting from the scam. Many of them allegedly made cash transactions to bypass GST and income tax filings. Meanwhile, Khan has been placed in judicial custody, and authorities are seeking further remand to trace the wider network involved.
Officials have hinted that more arrests are likely, especially as evidence mounts of an international syndicate aiding the racket. The case has exposed the gaping vulnerabilities in India’s customs and import monitoring systems, especially in the niche domain of luxury vehicles.