Pune: Authorities have uncovered a ₹561 crore GST tax evasion scheme involving the submission of fake documents under the guise of a fictitious company.
The Pune office of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Department has taken legal action, resulting in the registration of a case at the Bund Garden Police Station. One individual has been arrested, and cases have been filed against seven others in connection with the scam.
The accused, identified as Mohammed Riazuddin from Hyderabad, Telangana, was apprehended by the authorities. His associates, namely Abdul Salam alias Salambhai, Naishab Malik Naushadbhai, Salman Malik, Shadabbhai, Tanveer, Oasis, and Raju Yadav, have also been charged.
GST officer Ravi Bhushan Prasad Singh Kumar lodged the complaint against Riazuddin, who has been placed in judicial custody and transferred to Yerawada Central Jail.
Investigations revealed that the accused utilized fake documents and receipts to defraud the GST system. Charges have been filed under sections related to forgery, fraud, and violations of the Information Technology Act.
The GST department’s inspection commenced in August when officers flagged suspicious transactions in the account of N.L. Traders.
A subsequent investigation led officials to a scrap dealer in Sanaswadi on Nagar Road, who disclosed that the GST payment receipts were provided by Salimbhai of S.B. Trading Company in Hyderabad.
Upon cross-checking, officials from the Hyderabad GST office confirmed that no such company existed.
Further technical analysis exposed that Riazuddin had created these fraudulent receipts. Authorities seized two laptops, four mobile phones, a pen drive, and various fake receipts from his possession. Riazuddin confessed during questioning that he had fabricated tax receipts for 58 different companies.
His associates, including Abdul Salam and others, were implicated in the scam, having paid him for the fraudulent GST receipts. It was revealed that Raju Yadav was assigned the task of presenting the fake receipts to create an illusion of tax compliance.