Regular bail in GST fraud allegations granted where investigation was complete and the applicant's role appeared limited.

Regular bail was granted in a GST-offences prosecution after the Court considered that investigation was complete, the charge-sheet had been filed, and the applicant's attributed role was confined to compliance-related activity. The allegations of filing fraudulent returns for non-existent firms and referring to fake entities for input tax credit were assessed against the applicant's limited involvement, the absence of material showing him to be a principal conspirator, and the apparent consistency of the alleged gain with consultancy charges. On those facts, the Court exercised bail discretion in favour of the applicant, subject to conditions.

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Issues: Grant of regular bail in a prosecution for alleged GST offences, in the context of the applicant's role, the completion of investigation, and the nature of the allegations.

Analysis: The application was considered on the allegations that the applicant, an advocate, had filed fraudulent returns for non-existent firms and had stated under Section 70 that some firms were non-functional and fake entities created for fraudulent input tax credit. The Court also noted that the charge-sheet had been filed, the attributed role was limited to compliance activity, the alleged monetary gain appeared consistent with consultancy charges, and the applicant did not appear to be a major conspirator. In view of the completed investigation and the nature of the offence, the Court found the case fit for exercise of bail discretion, relying on the principles governing bail.

Conclusion: Regular bail was granted to the applicant on conditions.

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