Mumbai: Steel firm directors booked for tax default of ₹92 crore

MRA Marg police booked two directors of a Fort-based steel product manufacturing company for allegedly defaulting ₹92

MRA Marg police booked two directors of a Fort-based steel product manufacturing company for allegedly defaulting ₹92.92 crore worth Sales Tax and Value Added Tax to the state government between 2014 and 18.

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Chetan Mehta and Mahadev Shringare, directors of Opera Steel Private Limited, have been booked on the complaint of Shrikant Gavare, a sales tax officer.

Gavare in his statement to police has stated that the company defaulted in paying the due tax to the state government between 2014 and 18, and that the amount has now become ₹92,92,66,312 with interest and penalty.

Various letters, summons, notices, reminders, warning summons and police prosecution notice have been slapped to the company and its directors, but the tax department never received any response from company officials, a police officer said.

The company moved the Bombay high court against the tax department’s order, but the same was rejected by the court. They then filed an appeal in higher court and the matter is currently subjudice. But, the court has not passed any stay order on the tax department’s action and the company, too, had not approached the department with any court order.

As per the first information report (FIR), a copy of which is with HT, tax officials also claimed that sufficient time and fair opportunity was given to the company for paying the tax, but they failed to do so.

“From this, it prima facie appears that the accused company and its directors have committed an offence as per section 74(2) of the Value Added Tax Act, 2002,” Gavare said in the police complaint.

Hence, as a last resort, the department on Thursday registered a criminal case against two directors of the company under sections 420 (cheating), 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code, section 9 of the Central Sales Tax Act and 74(2) of the Value Added Tax Act, 2002.

The police are now going through the document and communication details submitted by the complainant. The accused would soon be summoned for questioning, and if they fail to respond to the summons they may face arrest, another police officer said.