Chandigarh: The Punjab state taxation department has arrested the alleged mastermind of a Rs 55-crore fake billing racket that enabled fraudulent input tax credit (ITC) claims worth Rs 8.35 crore, finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema said on Thursday.Cheema identified the accused as Bhupinder Sharma, proprietor of Jalandhar-based Ramsons Corporation, who was arrested under Section 69 of the Punjab GST Act, 2017.According to the minister, preliminary investigation revealed that the firm issued GST invoices without any actual supply of goods, facilitating bogus transactions worth Rs 55.35 crore.“The fake billing resulted in wrongful availment and passing of ITC amounting to nearly Rs 8.35 crore. The fraudulently passed ITC was subsequently used by certain manufacturing firms to claim integrated GST (IGST) refunds on exports, causing substantial loss to the state exchequer,” Cheema said.He claimed the arrest, made on July 9, followed an investigation by the state GST department in Jalandhar. “The offences involved are cognisable and non-bailable under the Punjab GST Act,” he said.Cheema said the investigation was continuing to identify the beneficiaries, trace the flow of the fraudulent ITC and ascertain the total tax evasion. “Appropriate legal action will be taken against all those found involved in the racket,” he added. MSID:: 132292751 413 |
