The GST intelligence arm DGGI has busted fraudulent availment of Input tax credit (ITC) and cash refund of about Rs 61 crore by certain exporter companies, an official statement said on Friday.

The Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) had inputs that few exporter companies were engaged in the fraudulent availment of Input Tax Credit (ITC) on the invoices of non-existing and fictitious firms or such firms, which apparently do not have any purchases themselves.

"The ITC so availed was utilized to pay IGST on the export goods, which was thereafter claimed as cash refund. Thus, the government exchequer was put at double loss – on one hand ITC was obtained on goods where no tax was paid, and on the other hand IGST paid from such fraudulently availed ITC was obtained as cash refund.

"The amount of IGST refund obtained is estimated to be approx Rs 61 crore," the statement said.

DGGI, Headquarter, searched the exporter companies and residence of their owners as well as premises of various supplier companies on March 6, 2020. These supplier companies were found to have supplied only bills to these exporters, without the supply of goods. The exporters had taken ITC on these fake bills and had taken refund of the same as the goods were shown to be exported.

The controllers of the export firms were arrested on March 6 by the DGGI. However, Ludhiana-based owner of the supplier firms was untraceable. He was not appearing for investigations even after various summons, the statement noted.

It said based on inputs received that the said person was hiding in Shimla, a team of officers arrested him on October 7. Subsequently, he was produced before the competent Court and was sent to judicial custody at the Tihar Central Jail for 14 days.