According to the Press Note released Mr M Srinivas, Principal Commissioner Hyderabad GST, Intelligence gathered by the officers of Hyderabad Central GST Commissionerate revealed that a group of at least 8 (eight) companies have been indulging in generating fake invoices without actual supply of TMT Bars, MS Bars, MS Flat Products etc.; and have been passing on Input Tax Credit to other tax payers within the same group and some to other taxpayers, since July, 2017.

The fake invoices generated by them involved about Rs.1289 Cr. of value and Input Tax Credit (ITC) of about Rs.224 Cr. Five out of these taxpayers are operating from the same address and many of the Directors/Partners/Proprietors of these firms/companies, are common.

 Several incriminating documents were recovered during the simultaneous searches conducted at the residential and business premises of these companies and the concerned. These companies are also indulging in circular fake trading just to inflate their turnover, besides supplying such fake invoices to some others.

They generated e-way bills in support of the fake invoices issued by them. While some e-way bills are also fake, the vehicles mentioned in e-way bills are found to have much lesser carrying capacity than the quantity shown in the Invoices.

Investigation also, prima facie, reveals that the above modus operandi is also being adopted to defraud the Banks for claiming ineligible “credit facilities” or “Letters of Credit” (LCs), without any collateral securities.

One key person was arrested; recovered an amount of Rs.19.75 Crore; and the investigation is in progress.