Fake GST Bills: In a big crackdown tax officers arrest 12 persons, including a CA

GST intelligence authorities Monday arrested a dozen offenders, including a chartered accountant and a lady offender in a nationwide crackdown against the use of fake GST bills to illegally avail the input tax credit (ITC), writes ETV Bharat's Deputy News Editor Krishnanand Tripathi.

New Delhi:In the ongoing nationwide crackdown against the use of fake GST bills to illegally avail the input tax credit (ITC), GST intelligence authorities Monday arrested a dozen offenders, including a chartered accountant and a lady offender, ETV Bharat has learnt.

"A Chartered Accountant, Abhishek Singhal, who was involved in running fake firms to issue fraudulent invoices has been arrested," a source in the department of revenue, ministry of finance told ETV Bharat.

According to sources, the CGST Jaipur Zone, noticed that CA Abhishek Singhal was involved in three fake firms which were generating fake GST invoices of miscellaneous commodities without actual supply of goods.

"He did not co-operate with authorities during investigations, following which a charge sheet was filed against him in the Economic Offence Court where he surrendered later and was sent to judicial custody," said a person familiar with the matter.

Abhishek Singhal is the 10th Chartered Accountant who has been arrested by GST authorities as the total number of offenders arrested has gone to 329 offenders.

Sources said that out of the 329 persons arrested so far, at least four persons have been booked under COFEPOSA (Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act).

“The GST intelligence and CGST authorities have booked more than 3200 cases against 9600 fake GSTIN entities as of now. Also, the authorities have recovered more than Rs. 1,000 crore from these fraudsters,” said the source.

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10 CAs arrested so far

According to the tax officials, out of the 329 offenders arrested so far, there are 131 masterminds, 113 proprietors, 46 directors or managing directors, 17 partners, 5 of the offenders were either CEO, CFO or CMD of their companies.

Officials have so far arrested 10 chartered accountants, 4 accountants and one each of company secretary, broker, and GST practitioner.

Arrested persons include fake entities operators and the end beneficiaries who connive with these fraudsters running businesses of fake invoices.

Tax officials use AI, Machine Learning

According to the sources, the GST authorities have been using deep data analytics, integrated data-sharing and use of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to detect cases of fraud.

"The technology has enabled the GST ecosystem and intelligence authorities to identify layer-by-layer activities of these fake entities and their networking without any overreach and able to pinpoint the fraudsters with specific inputs to take targeted actions and further investigations against them," said a source.

Crackdown leads to record GST collection

GST collections have touched a record high of Rs 1.15 lakh crore in December and Rs 1.20 lakh crore in January after the start of a nationwide crackdown in early November last year.

Tax authorities expect a similar higher collection trend to continue in the month of February 2021 as well.

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