The steel trade in Gujarat appears to be coming under the GST department’s scanner, with headquarters teams carrying out searches at premises in Rajkot, Bhavnagar and Bharuch, sources said.
According to sources, the action is believed to be linked to suspected irregularities in billing, including allegedly issuing or using invoices without actual movement of goods and wrongful availment or passing on of input tax credit (ITC).
The development comes days after the Central GST department in Delhi arrested two persons in separate cases involving iron and steel traders for allegedly availing and passing on fraudulent ITC through bogus invoices. In one case, investigators detected alleged fraudulent ITC of more than Rs 25.22 crore through invoices worth around Rs 140.14 crore. In another case, the alleged fraudulent ITC exceeded Rs 15.78 crore against bogus invoices of about Rs 87.67 crore.
Investigators in the Delhi cases found that several firms issuing the invoices were allegedly non-existent, non-functional, suspended or cancelled. They also found that ITC had allegedly been claimed without actual receipt of goods and subsequently passed on through invoices without corresponding supplies.
Sources said Gujarat authorities are examining whether similar billing and ITC patterns exist among steel traders in the state. The scrutiny could cover transactions between traders, suppliers and recipients of ITC, along with the movement of goods and supporting e-way bills.
The Directorate General of GST Intelligence has increasingly relied on data analytics, digital forensics and intelligence-sharing to identify networks involved in fake invoicing and fraudulent ITC.
Officials have not yet disclosed details of the searches or the amount of suspected tax evasion involved.
Source from: https://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/gst-dept-scans-steel-trade-in-gujarat/81922443.html
