New Delhi, Jan 13 (IANS): Using data analytics, the revenue department has identified 931 cases of suspected GST fraud and has started scanning all their pending refund claims for inverted duty structure.
As many as 27,000 taxpayers have filed refund claims of over Rs 28,000 crore on account of inverted duty structure across the country in the current fiscal.
"The identified taxpayers who have purchased goods from tax-evading non-filers would face verification and scrutiny as necessary," said a Finance Ministry source.
The revenue department has been tough with tax evasion and leakage in its bid to augment GST revenues, which have not grown on expected lines. In various cases, the central GST authorities last month summoned suspected business firms with 12 key documents pertaining to FY18.
The GST authorities found 6,641 cases involving 7,164 entities till November last year and booked them for allegedly gaming the system.
Sources said the maximum number of such cases for ITC frauds have been booked in Kolkata zone followed by Delhi, Jaipur and Panchkula (Haryana).
Official sources said that investigators in Delhi have busted through data analytics a significant fraud case, where fraudsters created a network of over 500 entities comprising fake billers, intermediary dealers, distributors and bogus manufacturers of hawai chappals for availing and encashing fake ITC credits.
Another important case was that of IGST fraud from Surat in which preliminary investigations revealed that 19 firms fraudulently claimed ITC to the tune of Rs 55 crore against fake invoices received by these firms valued at Rs 679 crore.
"During the search at the premises of two kingpin firms, it was revealed that 17 other firms were registered with GST by misusing the identity/documents of daily wagers, casual workers etc.," the official quoted above said.
The data analytics wing of GST authority has been able to identify dozens of cases involving fake invoicing and fraudulent tax credits which have been encashed through the facility of IGST refunds.