The CGST Mumbai Zone and CGST Navi Mumbai Commissionerate have arrested the Head of Finance of a prominent firm on March 1, 2024, for allegedly supplying taxable services worth approximately ₹492 crore without issuing tax invoices. This act of evasion is estimated to have resulted in a GST fraud of ₹88 crore.
M/s Foodlink F&B Holdings India Pvt Ltd Director: Sanjay Vazirani, Mumbai is found to have supplied taxable service amounting to Rs. 492 Cr approximately without issuing tax invoice and thereby committing offence as specified in clause (a) of sub-section (1) of Section 132 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
The First arrest in the case was made in December 2023, when the Finance Controller of the said company admitted his role in illegal transfer/deposit of cash, generated from the stated modus operandi in various bank accounts not declared in GST Registration, by breaking it into smaller amounts to avoid tax scrutiny and depositing in the name of fake B2C restaurant sale. This is the second arrest in this case.
The last accused was arrested in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, and produced before a Magistrate who approved transit remand. The accused was later produced before the jurisdictional Magistrate, who remanded him to judicial custody till March 12, 2024. This is the second big arrest in this high-profile tax evasion case.
CGST officials have reiterated its zero-tolerance stance with respect to such violations and confirmed that stern actions shall be taken in the instant cases in the interest of ensuring airborne compliance while also safeguarding revenue collection.
Section 132 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 states that supplying goods or services without the issue of tax invoices is a cognizable and non-bailable offense if the tax evasion value surpasses ₹5 crore.
