GST fraud of Rs 138 crore busted in Odisha, four arrested

Bhubaneswar: Four persons have been arrested after a racket involving generation of fake Goods and Services Tax (GST) invoices for fraudulently claiming input tax credit on goods not supplied was busted in Odisha, an official said on Friday.

Four persons have been arrested for their involvement in fraudulently availing and passing of bogus input credit of Rs 138 crore on the strength of fake invoices, GST Commissioner Sushil Lohani said.

The accused have been identified as Rama Chandra Mallick and Aditya Nayak both partners in Biraja Steel, Dindayal Agarwal, lessee of Biraja Steel, and Atul Bansal.

Atul Bansal is the mastermind in the inter-state GST fraud, Lohani said.

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Investigations have revealed that following a novel modus operandi, Bansal, along with others, had created as many as 20 fictitious firms in the name of several persons, including housewives, taxi drivers, dally wagers, plumbers and unemployed youth.

Bank accounts were opened in the name of these dummy firms, he added.

These firms were used to show the purchase of iron and steel goods worth Rs 603 crore and sale of Rs 743 crore without tax payment, Lohani said.