Mumbai: GST department cheated of over Rs 2.22 crore

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The Goods and Service Tax (GST) Mazagon office has registered a case of cheating of around Rs 2.22 crore at the Byculla police station, after a person approached them online seeking a refund. In the complaint it has been said that on the basis of wrong documents, a refund of '2.22 crore was taken, and when the GST department checked the documents and the address written on it later, both were found to be fake. Department staff visited the address given in the documents, but no person of that name was found living at the place.

According to the police, on Tuesday, GST officer Yogesh Manal lodged a complaint that a person had cheated the GST department of '2,22,13,170 on the basis of wrong documents. According to the complaint, in the year 2019 between January 3 and January 24, a person named Shailesh Bhimrao Navnage had claimed the refund of '2,22,13,170.

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When GST department staff later went to the address given in the documents submitted online by Navnage, after he was given the refund, they found no person by this name lived there. The person had registered his company with GST under the Maharashtra GST Act 2017, Central GST Act 2017 and GST Refund Act 2017 using a duplicate electric bill.

"The IP address of the email id from which the person communicated for GST registration is being searched. A case has been registered under sections 420,419,465,468,471 of IPC and 132(1)(e), 132(1)(f) of the GST Act," a police official told mid-day. Additional CP Dnyaneshwar Chavan told mid-day, "We have registered an FIR in this matter and further investigation is on."