Vadodara: The beleaguered Diamond Power Infrastructure Ltd (DPIL) is also under the scanner of the central excise department that is investigating the fraudulent use of Cenvat credit by the promoters.
DPIL has been issued a show-cause notice of Rs 130 crore by the excise department after it conducted investigations about for two years. DPIL managing director Amit Bhatnagar was even arrested by the excise officials in 2015 in connection with the same case.
Excise officials said that their initial investigations pointed to an evasion of Rs 42 crore towards excise duty. “DPIL used to show purchase and supply on paper. Records were fudged to show that the company purchased goods and then excise benefits were taken. The false transactions also helped them in jacking up turnover of the company,” an excise official told TOI.
“Between 2015 and 2017, we conducted a detailed investigation of DPIL and its group company Diamond Power Transformers Ltd (DPTL). We found that the companies had evaded Rs 130 crore excise duty by preparing false documents. A show-cause notice has been sent to Bhatnagar and his companies,” the official said.
“We examined the Cenvat accounts, DPIL’s documents and also took statements of the suppliers,” he added.
Bhatnagar was arrested by the excise officials in 2015 for evading Rs 42 crore excise but he was granted bail on the same day after he promised the court that he would pay up the amount. “But Bhatnagar never paid the amount. Now, DPIL and its related companies will have to respond to the show-cause notice. They can appeal to the tribunal and later in the court,” an excise official said.
Sources in the department said that the CBI too had contacted the excise department to collect some DPIL documents.
The CBI registered FIR against DPIL and its top management earlier this month for committing bank loan fraud worth Rs 2,654 crore. But it was the excise department that first caught his alleged fraud after it received a complaint. DPIL managing director, Amit Bhatnagar, joint managing director Sumeet Bhatnagar and founder Suresh Bhatnagar are currently in the CBI custody.
