The Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), Regional Unit, Rohtak (Haryana) has arrested one person named Shri Sunny Singhal of Panipat who was found involved in issuing fake invoices from various firms without actual movement of goods having taxable value of ₹ 146.62 Crores and fraudulently passing ITC amounting to ₹ 16.54 Crores. He passed on such fraudulent ITC to some of the buyers who availed of the same to discharge their GST liability against their outward supplies with an ulterior motive to defraud the Government exchequer. During the course of investigation, Shri Singhal has admitted that these firms were opened by him in the name of different persons as Proprietorship firms. He further admitted that he used to issue bills without movement of goods and for this he used to earn commission and some of the entries in the diaries/records resumed were of such commission.    

Thus, Shri Sunny Singhal has committed offences under the provisions of Section 132(1)(b)(c) of the Central Goods & Services Tax Act (CGST), 2017, which are cognizable and non-bailable offences under Section 132(5) of the CGST Act, 2017, being punishable under Section 132(1)(l)(i) of the CGST Act, 2017. Consequently, Shri Sunny Singhal was arrested on 25.06.2019 under Section 69(1) of the CGST Act, 2017 and produced in Rohtak Court on 26.6.2019. The Court has sent him to judicial custody till 9.7.2019. During the investigations conducted so far into the fake billing racket in this case, DGGI, Regional Unit, Rohtak has recovered an amount of ₹ 3.75 Crore from the GST evaded. Further investigations in the matter are in the progress.

GST fraud by fake invoices leads to arrest for issuing fictitious bills and passing illicit input tax credit claims. A person was arrested after admitting to opening multiple proprietorship firms and issuing bills without movement of goods to enable buyers to avail and pass fraudulent ITC. The conduct is alleged to constitute offences under Section 132(1)(b) and (c) of the CGST Act, treated as cognizable and non-bailable under Section 132(5) and punishable under Section 132(1)(l)(i); arrest was effected under Section 69(1) and further investigation and recoveries are in progress.