₹1.64 Crore in Cash and 400 Grams of Gold Seized in Raids
Raipur,(thestates.news)| Chhattisgarh Governmen’s GST Department has uncovered a massive tax evasion racket involving more than 170 bogus firms, created to generate fake invoices and siphon off Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenues. The syndicate, allegedly masterminded by Mohd. Farhan Sorathiya, who worked as a GST tax consultant, has been causing losses of several crores of rupees in state revenue every month.
The Department’s Business Intelligence Unit (BIU) had been investigating the case for over a month. Acting on the leads, officials conducted a search at Sorathiya’s office on September 12, which revealed documents relating to 172 firms. Sorathiya had employed five office staff to register these firms, file returns, and generate e-way bills. Investigators also seized evidence of forged tenancy agreements, consent letters, and affidavits used for fraudulent registrations.
Initial findings suggest that just 26 bogus firms had generated e-way bills worth ₹822 crore, while declaring a turnover of only ₹106 crore in their returns. This discrepancy alone points to an estimated GST revenue loss of nearly ₹100 crore to the state exchequer. Documents further revealed that fake registrations were not limited to Chhattisgarh but also extended to Punjab, Assam, Manipur, and Odisha.
Based on intelligence inputs about concealment of documents, officials searched the residence of Sorathiya’s uncle, Mohd. Abdul Latif Sorathiya, on September 17. The raid led to the recovery of ₹1.64 crore in cash and four gold biscuits weighing 400 grams. The seized assets have been handed over to the Income Tax Department for further action.
Officials confirmed that calculations of the total GST fraud committed through these bogus firms are underway. Several brokers, scrap dealers, and companies that avail undue Input Tax Credit (ITC) through this network are also under the scanner. The State Tax Department has launched a comprehensive investigation, with further legal proceedings currently in progress.
