I received this on one of my chain mails and out of curiosity googled about poopy seeds in UAE - surprisingly it is very true and the laws are extremely stringent.


Dear Friends,

Yesterday only I came to know of a case from a friend of mine which is very scary. One of his friends was traveling to UK via Dubai Unfortunately he was carrying a packet of Khas Khas which is a commonly used spice in some Indian curries and sweets. Khas Khas is also known as poppy seed which can be sprouted to grow narcotics (afeem etc.).

This innocent person did not know that recently the laws in UAE and other Gulf countries have been revised and carrying Khas Khas is punishable with minimum 20 years of imprisonment or even worse with death penalty. Currently, the person is in a jail in Dubai for the last two weeks. His friends are frantically trying hard for his release but are finding that this has become a very very serious case. Lawyers are asking huge fees amounting to AED 100,000 even to appear in the court to plead for his innocence.

Please forward this email to all you know specially in India. They should know the seriousness of this matter and should never ever carry even minutest quantities of the following items when traveling to Gulf countries:

1. Khas Khas whether raw, roasted or cooked.
2. Paan
3. Beetle nut (supari and its products, e.g. Paan Parag etc.)

The penalties are very severe and it could destroy the life of an innocent person.

I appeal you to create the awareness by forwarding this email to all you know.



This exact incident may or may not be true, but the fact that Poppy seeds are banned in UAE is TRUE - please be careful what you carry.

Hiren

Good to know.

Apparently the rule has been around since 2008 as per http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7234786.stm & http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/news/article3333905.ece

and WiKi notes that as well
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppy_seed

Dubai transit is easier for people going to Ahmadabad & Kerala ...

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Mumbai Maazi Ladki ...

Rediff reported this in 1999 as per LINK
http://www.rediff.com/news/1999/dec/20uae.htm

Srididdi...

It is correct the news was in 1999 bust still same rules apply.

that time i was in Abudhabi.. Gulf news had a head line about this

cmanyam

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Hi to all...

correct me if i am worng.

this forum means the person who board from india and chnage plane in dubai (like Emirat airways from ahmedabad to toronto) has no problem.

Because no security or immigration checking will done in dubai. once u board your luggage from ahmedabad u just get your beggage in toronto. so immigration checking been happened in toronto not in dubai.

so this thing only apply if u r going to stay in dubai.

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pranav shah

Quote:

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Originally posted by pranavshah77

so this thing only apply if u r going to stay in dubai.

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