Excise fraud worth Rs2,000 crore unearthed in Punjab

Punjab excise and taxation department today said that as many as 170 business firms have indulged in bogus transactions with some fake companies to claim exemption from Value Added Tax (VAT) to the tune of Rs2,000 crore.

Several companies were involved in preparing bogus invoices and setting up fake firms to claim tax exemption. Criminal cases against some of them have also been registered, excise and taxation commissioner A Vinu Parsad said.

The fraud came to light when the department sleuths raided a local steel unit and discovered fake transactions worth hundreds of crores. During investigations neither the seller nor the buyer were found when a team of income tax officials went to verify the addresses mentioned in the invoices, the department said. These firms had sought and received the VAT refunds earlier, it said.