Sirsa: Business owner accused of evading taxes by using fictitious companies

Atul Gupta, the owner of M/s Gupta Paints and Lime Store in the town’s Subhash Chowk, has been taken into custody by the Sirsa police Special Investigation Team on charges of using fictitious companies to conduct a financial crime. After his appearance in court today, he was placed under two days of police remand.

The accused was first sent a notice by the SIT, which was assembled by a former ADGP, offering him a chance to explain himself. His answer did not, however, persuade the SIT, which resulted in his detention.

The complaint was filed on July 29, 2016, by VK Shastri, the Excise and Taxation Department’s then-ETO, against M/s Gupta Paints and Lime Store. According to the complaint, ETO Neeraj Garg’s inquiry revealed that the store’s operator had carefully planned tax fraud using fictitious documentation. The company displayed paint sales to Rajasthani businesses, while Rajasthani businesses displayed cottonseed meal sales. The Excise and Taxation Department’s accusation prompted the Sirsa Police to file a case against the retailer.

The companies presented fake interstate sales to companies in Rajasthan, such as M/s Sandhya Enterprises, M/s Gaurav Kumar Sanjay Kumar, M/s Shiva Enterprises, Nohar, and M/s Shanti Enterprises, Nohar, according to the claims. Through interstate transactions with these enterprises, tax evasion was carried out, and thousands of rupees in reimbursements from the government treasury were also collected.

The accused collaborated with an official of the Excise and Taxation Department to issue fake invoices based on fake bills, demonstrating fictitious interstate sales to fictitious firms in Rajasthan in 2009-2010, 2010-2011, and 2011-2012, the police spokesperson said. This allowed the accused to obtain refunds totaling Rs 36,22,984 and cause losses to the government treasury by having taxes adjusted. The company is requesting a total of Rs 1,82,64,689. He said that the accused former excise officer, who is being held in connection with another case, would be the subject of a production warrant obtained by the police.