The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on Saturday presented traders Shiv Kumar Deora, Mohit Deora, and Amit Gupta before the Special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in connection with a massive Rs 800 crore GST fraud. The trio, arrested from Kolkata after extensive questioning on Friday, was remanded to judicial custody.
According to ED sources, the arrests are part of an ongoing investigation into a large-scale fake invoicing racket. The agency had earlier conducted coordinated search operations at nine locations across Jharkhand and West Bengal on Thursday, which also led to the apprehension of another key accused, Amit Agrawal.
Investigators allege that the accused generated fraudulent invoices amounting to a staggering Rs 14,325 crore, facilitating the illegal claim of over Rs 800 crore in input tax credit (ITC) under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime. The ED suspects that a complex network of shell companies and dummy firms were used to orchestrate the scam.
The special court has scheduled the next hearing for May 13, where further evidence and remand requests may be presented.
The crackdown marks a significant step in the ED’s wider efforts to combat GST-related financial crimes, which have surged in recent years. Authorities are also probing possible links between the accused and other business entities across India.
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