Sat phone recovered from Indian-American bizman at Bhuj

A US citizen of Indian origin was today found in possession of a satellite phone when he was about to board a flight to Mumbai from the Bhuj airport in Gujarat, officials said.

Navinchandra Dimond, president and CEO of a hotel chain in the US, was stopped by the CISF personnel after they found him carrying a satellite phone without a valid license, they said.

Bhuj 'A' division police of Kutch district lodged a case against Dimond under section 20 of the Indian Telegraph Act, said police inspector, Vaibhav Khant.

"Dimond is visiting India on a tourist visa. The CISF informed us that they have found a satellite phone when he was about to board a flight to Mumbai. We have lodged a case against him and seized the phone for further probe," he said.

Bhuj police submitted a case report to a local court and asked Dimond to stay back for a probe.

According to M S Bharada, Superintendent of Police for Kutch-West region, the offence is not a serious one, as possession of a satellite phone without any licence would attract a fine of Rs 1,000 only.

"We have learned that Dimond did not use that phone during his visit. We have lodged a case because he did not have the licence to use such phone in India. Otherwise, one can use such phone after obtaining permissions," said Bharada.