A team of Ahmedabad’s Crime Branch has arrested four more individuals in connection with the GST fraud case. Three of the accused were from Bhavnagar, while one was from Rajkot.
The investigation commenced after the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) uncovered a fraudulent billing scheme linked to Dhruvi Enterprise, an alleged shell company, which had obtained a GST registration in March 2023 using a forged rental agreement. This registration was subsequently cancelled by the tax department, starting further scrutiny of the firm’s operations.
The individuals arrested on Sunday include Faisal Sheikh, 32, from Vadva, Bhavnagar, who allegedly handled the Dhruvi Enterprise file; Irfan, also known as Padu Sattar Jethva, 42, from Matba Chowk, Bhavnagar, who allegedly ran Dhruvi’s business; Jignesh Desai, 50, from Vaghavadi Road, Parimal, Bhavnagar, accused of managing the firm’s bank account; and Paresh Dodiya, 25, from Gondal, Rajkot, the proprietor of Prakash Industries.
On Saturday, crime branch officials disclosed that documents belonging to Haresh Makwana, a daily wage worker from Gadhada in Bhavnagar, were allegedly utilised to establish Dhruvi Enterprise, the firm at the core of the alleged Rs 50,000 crore GST fraud case.
Last week, the city crime branch lodged an FIR against 13 companies based on a complaint from the Ahmedabad zonal unit of the DGGI. The complaint has disclosed an alleged scheme wherein fake companies were set up to defraud the government by falsely claiming input tax credits (ITC) through fabricated transactions.
Also Read: Nobuyo Oyama, Voice of Doraemon for 25 Years, Dies at 90