Mumbai police have booked a former accountant of a prominent film production company for allegedly siphoning off Rs 56 lakh that was meant to be paid as GST on behalf of the company's CEO. The alleged fraud resulted in the CEO's total GST liability, including late fees and interest, rising to Rs 65.82 lakh, officials said on Wednesday.
According to the FIR registered at Khar police station, the accused, Bhagwan Kaskar, was employed as an accountant with Excel Entertainment Pvt Ltd, where the complainant, Vishal Ramchandani, has been serving as CEO since 2008. The company, based in Khar, has a well-known Bollywood actor and film producer among its directors. Police said Kaskar was entrusted with filing GST returns for Ramchandani from 2017, with the tax amounts being transferred to the accountant's bank account through NEFT.
The alleged fraud came to light in 2024 after another company executive noticed delays in GST filings. Upon verification by chartered accountant Pradeep Mishra, it was found that only Rs 9.75 lakh of GST had been deposited against Rs 56 lakh transferred by Ramchandani between 2019 and 2024. When confronted, Kaskar reportedly admitted to paying only a portion of the tax and misusing the remaining funds for personal expenses. After failing to return the amount despite assurances, the complainant approached the police, leading to the registration of a cheating case following a detailed inquiry.
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