The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has moved decisively against a GST fraud syndicate, provisionally attaching 10 immovable properties valued at ₹15.41 crore in Kolkata and Howrah as part of an ongoing investigation. The action was taken under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and is tied to a larger probe involving bogus GST input tax credit (ITC) claims.
The First Firm to Assess Your DFIR Capability Maturity and Provide DFIR as a Service (DFIRaaS)
Forged Invoices, Bogus ITC and Shell Firms
According to ED officials, the accused—led by Amit Gupta and associates—used a network of 135 shell companies across Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Odisha to issue fake GST invoices without actual supply of goods. These invoices generated fraudulent input tax credit totaling around ₹734 crore. The syndicate then sold this fake ITC to legitimate end-user firms for commission, enabling them to evade genuine tax liabilities. The fraudsters reportedly earned about ₹67 crore in commissions from the scheme. Investigators claim Gupta and his aides funneled the illicit gains into property acquisitions, many of which are now under attachment.
Legal Action & Broader Recovery
The ED’s latest attachment follows an earlier order from July 3 that provisionally attached properties worth ₹5.29 crore linked to another accused, S.K. Deora. With the current 10 properties seized in Bengal, the cumulative attachment in the case now stands at around ₹20.70 crore. Arrests have already been made: Amit Gupta, Sumit Gupta, Amit Agarwal, and S.K. Deora are in judicial custody. The ED has filed a prosecution complaint against 10 accused before the Special PMLA Court in Ranchi. The agency continues to probe additional assets and accomplices in the syndicate.
The Bengal attachment is viewed as a crucial step in striking at the financial foundation of the fraud ring. With the properties seized and proceeds of crime frozen, investigators hope to recover value for the exchequer while dismantling the mechanisms that enabled this large-scale GST evasion.
