29.011 kg gold and 972.747 kg silver seized from criminals have been kept in the official locker of Rajasthan Government for many years. According to the latest report of CAG, its total estimated cost is Rs 64.44 crore. It has been said in the report that even after this property was in the name of the government from the court, it was not disposed of as per the rules. Due to this, the government is constantly having to spend extra on security, maintenance and record keeping. CAG has advised that their auction, sale or other legal process should be completed soon as per the rules. However, apart from Rajasthan, there is gold seized in other states. The central government has also seized gold worth about Rs 5000 crore from the airport.
Rajasthan is not the only state where a large amount of gold and silver is lying in the government’s possession. In the last few months, gold and jewelery worth crores of rupees have also been recovered in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Bihar. On the other hand, according to the data of the Central Government, from the financial year 2022-23 to October 2025, Customs and DRI seized 8,598.18 kg of gold at the airports of the country, which was worth about Rs 5,003.60 crore. It is clear from this that major action is being taken continuously in cases related to gold smuggling and financial crime. In such a situation, the CAG report of Rajasthan raises new questions on the disposal system of seized gold in the entire country.
Gold and silver worth Rs 64.44 crore in Rajasthan
According to the CAG report, 29.011 kg gold and 972.747 kg silver are kept safe with the Rajasthan government. Its current estimated price is Rs 64.44 crore. This includes gold worth about Rs 42.36 crore and silver worth Rs 22.08 crore. According to the report, this gold and silver was seized in different criminal cases. Even after getting the government’s name from the court, it could not be disposed of as per the rules. CAG says that this is putting extra burden on the government for security, maintenance and maintaining records. Therefore, its auction or other legal process should be completed within the stipulated time.
13 kg gold found in vigilance raid
In July 2026, the Uttar Pradesh Vigilance team had raided the premises of retired Transport Department officer Lalit Kumar. During this period, about 13 kg gold, 9 kg silver, a large amount of cash and other assets were found. This action was allegedly taken in the matter of disproportionate property. This recovery once again brought financial crime cases involving government officials into the limelight.
BIS seized gold jewelery worth Rs 2.77 crore
In May 2026, BIS raided two jewelery shops in Bengaluru simultaneously. 1,618.17 grams of gold jewelery was seized from here, whose value was around Rs 2.77 crore. According to BIS, this action was taken on the allegation of breaking the rules of hallmarking. This case shows that not only gold smuggling, but also the violation of rules related to customer safety and quality standards is being tightened.
DRI had caught a consignment of 65 kg gold
About four years ago, DRI had exposed a large network of gold smugglers by conducting a joint operation in three states. During this period 65 kg of gold was seized. Of these, about 30 kg of gold was found in the vehicle of a courier company in Patna. According to the investigating agencies, this gold was brought to India through smuggling and was being sent to different states.
Action on gold smuggling is continuously increasing at the airport
According to the data given in the Parliament by the Central Government, the Customs Department and DRI took large-scale action against gold smuggling at the airport from the financial year 2022-23 to October 2025. During this period, 8,598.18 kg of gold was seized in 13,213 cases, whose value was about Rs 5,003.60 crore. The highest seizure occurred in 2023-24, when 3,714.38 kg of gold, worth Rs 2,081.39 crore, was seized in 5,962 cases. Whereas 2,775.88 kg gold was seized in 2022-23, 1,848.29 kg in 2024-25 and 259.63 kg in 2025-26 (till October 2025). These figures show that agencies are continuously taking strict action against gold smuggling through the airport.
Not only seizure, disposal is also a big challenge
Rajasthan’s CAG report raises a big question. Even when the court hands over a property to the government, why is it not disposed of for many years? Experts believe that due to timely valuation, auction or legal use of seized gold and silver, government resources remain stranded for a long time. Apart from this, government money is also spent on security, maintenance and record keeping. In such a situation, the need for a transparent and timely disposal system for seized valuable assets is being increasingly felt both at the state and central levels.
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