Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing has begun investigating alleged fraudulent GST transactions worth around Rs 141 crore after registering three cases involving claims of identity theft and misuse of PAN credentials to secure GST registrations and carry out high value transactions.
Three Complaints Trigger EOW Probe
One of the complaints was made in April by a 63 year old woman from New Delhi, who alleged that her PAN card details and the credentials of her former partnership firm were misused to obtain GST registration fraudulently. Police said the firm, which had been engaged in the manufacture of artificial jewellery, had ceased operations in 2013.
The woman later received official notices indicating that her identity details and the firm’s PAN had been used to secure GST registration. She further alleged that she came across information pointing to large scale tax irregularities linked to a business entity that had reportedly availed input tax credit worth about Rs 99.8 crore.
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PAN Details Allegedly Used to Create Fake Firms
In another case reported last month, a businessman from north Delhi alleged that his PAN card details were misused to fraudulently obtain GST registration, open a fictitious business entity and conduct high value transactions exceeding Rs 32 crore. He told police that unknown persons had created a fake firm without his knowledge using his personal tax identification details.
The GST registration in that instance was allegedly obtained using his PAN credentials along with a fictitious address in Pune, Maharashtra. The complainant said he had been receiving repeated notices from the income tax department regarding transactions linked to the allegedly fraudulent entity.
Closed Firm’s Identity Also Allegedly Misused
A third case, registered in March, concerns two businessmen who were partners in a Karol Bagh based firm that had shut down and whose GST registration had been surrendered in November 2022. They alleged misuse of their firm’s identity in suspected fraudulent financial transactions.
The complainants received income tax notices referring to alleged purchases amounting to Rs 9.8 crore by another business entity. They denied any business association or transaction with that firm or its proprietor and said the entries were fabricated. All three cases have been registered under provisions relating to cheating, criminal conspiracy and forgery, among other offences, as investigators examine what appears to be a broader pattern of identity theft being used to facilitate fraudulent GST activity.
About the author – Rehan Khan is a law student and legal journalist with a keen interest in cybercrime, digital fraud, and emerging technology laws. He writes on the intersection of law, cybersecurity, and online safety, focusing on developments that impact individuals and institutions in India.
