The Bicholim police have arrested a Navi Mumbai resident for allegedly committing a Rs 75 lakh GST fraud by obtaining a fake GST registration using forged documents. The incident dates back to August 2021, when the accused secured registration on the Central GST portal under the trade name Green Agro Industries.
The case came to light after GST officer Sophia Lawrence E. Vaz from the Department of Commercial Tax filed a complaint on January 13. She alleged that the accused intentionally evaded tax on supplies made under the fraudulent registration, causing a significant loss to the government exchequer. The officer stated that the suspect had uploaded forged documents, including an electricity bill and consent letter, to show a fake principal place of business at Parye, Bicholim.
Initially, the GST portal showed the name Omprakash Kewat, but during investigation, police discovered the real identity of the accused to be Dinesh Punja Patni (38), a resident of Navi Mumbai. According to officials, Patni had used the forged identity and fabricated documents to obtain GST credentials and carry out transactions without paying taxes.
Patni was first produced before a court in Belapur, which granted him a two-day transit remand. He was later brought to Goa, where the Bicholim Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) sent him to four days of police custody for further investigation.
Police said the probe is ongoing to determine the extent of the fake transactions and whether more individuals or entities were involved in the fraud. Authorities are also examining the misuse of GST credentials under the bogus business name to trace the full trail of tax evasion.
CAclubindia
