DGGI unearths Rs 1.5 crore of tax evasion by bag manufacturer

SURAT: Officers of Directorate General of GST Intelligence ( DGGI ) conducted raids on a Vapi-based woven bag manufacturer and searched 12 locations of his suppliers and receivers in Maharashtra, Union territory of Daman and Dadra Nagar Haveli (DNH) and Gujarat for evading tax to the tune of Rs1.5 crore.

Intelligence received by officers of Vapi and Surat regional units of DGGI said the private limited company, engaged in manufacturing of HDPE/PP woven bags, had shown certain fake purchases to avail inadmissible input tax credit (ITC) from some firms.

The owners had also showed use of certain inputs material, which they neither received nor used in the manufacturing of their final products. Further, the company also evaded GST on sale of scrap by suppressing its value and receiving back the differential amount in cash, the officials stated.

Simultaneous searches were conducted at 12 different locations pertaining to the firm, its suppliers and receivers at Silvassa, Bhiwandi, Mumbai, Daman, Vapi and Ahmedabad leading to seizure of various incriminating documents and records.

The tax evasion , according to the officials, is estimated at Rs1.5 crore. Further investigations are going on.

A senior officer on the condition of anonymity said, “The woven bag manufacturer has been involved in fake invoicing and evaded GST on the sale of scrap by suppressing its value. We are ascertaining the documents and records seized from 12 locations and also from the firm’s office in Vapi. The tax amount is likely to increase as there are 12 other firms and companies involved in the entire scam.”