TNN
Ludhiana: The Special Investigation Team of Punjab State GST, Ludhiana, has arrested three proprietors of a firm in the city that had allegedly claimed fraudulently input tax credit (ITC) of over Rs 30 crore on bogus invoices.
Tejbir Singh Sidhu, deputy commissioner (state GST), Ludhiana, said here on Tuesday that the search and seizure operations were conducted at four premises of the accused. A network of bogus firms using fake IDs in the names of daily-wagers, auto-rickshaw drivers, among others, was created across five states to pass on the fraudulently-claimed ITC to the final beneficiaries.
The accused used the ITC generated on fake invoices for exports, which were IGST paid, and thereafter claimed refund from the customs authorities.
It was found during investigation that the bogus billing network of the non-existent firms was used to generate fake invoices of more than Rs 350 crore and fraudulent ITC of more than Rs 30 crore. Officials said the accused had used about Rs 23 crore of the ITC claimed. The accused have been arrested under the GST laws and remanded to judicial custody. Action against other beneficiaries was also being initiated.