India star all-rounder Hardik Pandya issued a statement on reports that claimed two wrist watches worth Rs 5 crore were seized from him at the Mumbai airport, saying he voluntarily went to Mumbai airport customs counter to declare the items brought by him and pay the requisite customs duty.

Earlier, it was reported that his two luxury watches worth Rs 5 crore were seized by customs as the cricketer failed to produce bills. Hardik Pandya was returning home from Dubai after India’s disappointing show at the T20 World Cup. Hardik said that that only one watch worth Rs 1.5 crore had been taken by the customs department for “proper valuation”.

“I voluntarily went to Mumbai airport customs counter to declare the items brought by me and pay the requisite customs duty. Wrong perceptions have been floating around on social media regarding my declaration to customs at Mumbai airport, and I would like to clarify what transpired,” Hardik’s statement read.

“I had voluntarily declared all the items that I’d lawfully purchased from Dubai and was ready to pay whatever duties that needed to be paid. As a matter of fact, the customs department asked for all purchase documents which were submitted; however customs is doing proper valuation for duty which I’ve already confirmed to pay,” he said.

“The cost of the watch is approximately Rs 1.5 crore and not Rs 5 crore as per the rumours floating around on social media. I’m a law-abiding citizen of the country and I respect all government agencies. I’ve received all the cooperation from the Mumbai customs department and I’ve assured them of my full cooperation and will provide them with whatever legitimate documents they need to get this matter cleared. All allegations against me of crossing any legal boundaries are totally unfounded,” he added.