GST fraud: Rs 52 cr tax evasion traced

Additional Commissioner (Enforcement) Manabhanjan Acharya said the rent agreements signed in 2018 contained forged signature of the house owners, who had already died in 2006 and 2012.

BHUBANESWAR :  The State GST enforcement squad on Thursday busted a racket involved in tax fraud of Rs 52.77 crore by generating fake invoices of  Rs 294 crore. Proprietor of Sahoo Traders Pramod Kumar Sahoo of Sailashree Vihar and Vikash Sarawgi of Patia here were arrested in this connection. Commissioner of Commercial Taxes and GST Sushil Kumar Lohani said after tracking a chain of fraudulent transactions followed by scrutiny of suspected waybills of 11 business establishments, which were not existent, the squad arrested the two involved in the fraud.

“With the help of locals, Sahoo and Sarawgi collected document from some innocent people of Kandhamal district by assuring to facilitate them benefits from different Government schemes and opened the fictitious firms,” Lohani said. The accused misutilised the document for GST registration and opening of current accounts in different banks. They also forged house rent agreements submitted as proof of their firms.

Additional Commissioner (Enforcement) Manabhanjan Acharya said the rent agreements signed in 2018 contained forged signature of the house owners, who had already died in 2006 and 2012. “The bank accounts were opened and operated by forging the signature of account holders. The accused fraudulently passed on input tax credit of Rs 52.77 crore in the names of fictitious firms created and operated by them through fake invoices,” Acharya said.

It was also found that Sahoo and Sarawgi had purchased iron rod and scrap without payment of tax and obtaining purchase invoices from the actual supplier. In order to regularise the sale of goods, they allegedly manufactured fake purchase invoices. “All transactions were mostly done in 2018. We are taking steps to recover the tax availed with interest and penalty,” he added. This is the fourth biggest fraud detected in the recent months. Earlier, seven persons were arrested in three cases for allegedly committing fraud of Rs 273 crore.

Modus operandi
Rs 294 crore fake invoices generated 11 fictitious firms opened Rent agreements contained forged signature of house owners Accused had purchased iron rod and scrap without paying tax and obtaining purchase invoices from actual supplier

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com