‘Tax evasion’: GST commissionerate to issue show-cause notice to Fastway
The Fastway management has written to the chief commissioner of central excise and service tax, Chandigarh zone, saying that the complaint filed by Bains was false and the figures were twisted.
A day after local bodies minister Navjot Singh Sidhu said he would bring an ordinance in the upcoming cabinet meeting for an audit of tax collected from cable operators in the state during the last regime, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) commissionerate has decided to issue a show-cause notice to Fastway Transmission Pvt Ltd in an alleged case of tax evasion running into crores.
On Thursday, Lok Insaaf Party MLA Simarjeet Singh Bains submitted a memorandum to the GST commissioner, Ludhiana, seeking action against Fastway for allegedly evading service tax. GST commissioner, Ludhiana, Ashutosh Baranwal said: “The case is already being probed for the past six months and is in the completion stage. We will serve a notice to the firm soon. But I can’t disclose figures as it is part of our investigation,” he said.
In his memorandum, Bains alleged that Fastway started the cable business with support of Punjab Police and the Badals in 2008. The firm collects user charges, including service tax from customers but it is not deposited in the government treasury, Bains alleged.
“There are 8,000 cable operators in the state. Of them, 6,500 are directly working under Fastway. However, only 325 cable operators have registered themselves with service tax department while others are evading tax. Fastway has evaded service tax of over Rs ₹12,000 crore. We want the chief commissioner of central goods and service tax Manoranjan Kaur Virk to take action against the cable network firm,” he said.
He also accused that some officials of service tax department are hand in glove with the Fastway management. “In 2015, we had written about the tax evasion by Fastway to Union finance minister Arun Jaitley but no action was taken. I also appreciate the local bodies minister’s initiative to bring an ordinance in the cabinet meeting for audit of cable operators,” he said.
Fastway denies allegations
The Fastway management has written to the chief commissioner of central excise and service tax, Chandigarh zone, saying that the complaint filed by Bains was false and the figures were twisted.
The letter states that Fastway pays the entire service tax it collects from local cable operators. “The entire record is in the public domain and is open to scrutiny. It is a wishful thinking on the part of the MLA who smells political vendetta in everything and appears to take revenge rather than rake an issue related to the public welfare,” the letter states.