E-Paper
Central agencies detect Rs 512 crore GST evasion in one year after raids in Indore
The agency claims that the raids have revealed an instance tax evasion using dummy companies.
The directorate general of GST Intelligence (DGGI), responsible for checking indirect tax evasion, claimed to have detected goods and sales tax (GST) evasion of approximately Rs 512 crore in the past one year leading to seizure of several bank accounts and properties in Indore apart from arrest of five persons, according to a Friday official release by the enforcement agency under the ministry of finance.
According to the agency, the tax evasion estimate may rise further after assessing the data related to more dummy firms that may have provided raw material to the firm that was raided in Indore.
“Operation Kark, (launched) to counter illicit sale of pan masala/tobacco/cigarettes, which was initiated on May 30, has till now detected GST evasion of about Rs 512 Crore in the last one year, while five persons have been arrested in this operation. In order to protect the government revenue, six immoveable properties and 14 bank accounts have been provisionally attached. In one month period, the officials of Central GST Intelligence have conducted more than 50 searches under this operation,” said the release issued by additional director general, DGGI in Bhopal, PK Singh.
As per the official information, Rs 5.7 crore was seized in cash, besides 28 machines during the raids conducted at various places in Indore.
“Search by officials of Central GST Intelligence was conducted at the premises of the supplier of filters used in cigarettes on June 25, 2020. Investigations revealed that this unit had declared invoices to have provided cigarette filters to three dummy firms, but actually the filters were supplied to the firm that was raided,” said the release. It added that one proprietor of the dummy firm was found to be an employee of a newspaper publications private limited.
“In the searches conducted during the second fortnight of June, as many as 8 machines and huge quantities of raw materials used for cigarette/ cigarette filter manufacturing and cigarette packing have been detected and seized, since they were kept in undeclared premises for clandestine manufacture,” said the release.
