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DRI detected customs evasion worth over ₹2.21 crore by Vivo India: Govt
Vivo India is a subsidiary of China's Vivo Communication Technology Co. Ltd and is involved in manufacturing, assembling, wholesale trading as well as distribution of mobile handsets and accessories thereof.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has detected a customs duty evasion of around ₹2,217 crore from Vivo Mobile India Pvt. Ltd, a subsidiary of China's Vivo Communication Technology Co. Ltd, the government said.
According to a statement by the Union finance ministry on Wednesday, “During the course of investigation, searches were conducted by DRI officers at the factory premises of M/s Vivo India, which led to the recovery of incriminating evidence indicating wilful mis-declaration in the description of certain items imported by M/s Vivo India, for use in the manufacture of mobile phones.”
After the investigation was completed, a show cause notice was issued to Vivo India under provisions of the Customs Act, 1962.
The finance ministry also said that a sum of ₹60 crore has been voluntarily deposited by the company towards the discharge of its differential duty liability.
Vivo India is a subsidiary of China's Vivo Communication Technology Co. Ltd and is involved in manufacturing, assembling, wholesale trading as well as distribution of mobile handsets and accessories thereof.
A day ago, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the Enforcement Directorate (ED) was looking at 18 companies that were established by Vivo, and, there, they had voluntarily remitted ₹62,000 crore as a deposit.
"Of ₹1.25 lakh crore, which is the total sale, Vivo has transferred through these 18 companies a huge amount of funds and it is believed that Vivo India has, in turn, remitted Rs.0.62 lakh crores to its parent company, which is outside India," Sitharaman told the Rajya Sabha.
Meanwhile, the Union government is also looking into cases of alleged tax evasion by two other Chinese mobile companies- Oppo and Xiaomi.
(With agency inputs)
