GST Officers raided Fortune Copper Industries and Infinity Exim and unearth Rs.186 Crore GST Evasion; 2 Arrested

In a major search, the State GST Department discovered a Rs.186 crore GST scam, exposing widespread tax evasion involving fake copper purchases in the business.

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) officials arrested Pragnesh Kantariya, a partner at M/s Infinity Exim who was reportedly involved in a Rs.186 crore GST scam. GST officers raided Fortune Copper Industries, Infinity Exim, and 14 other Kantariya-owned enterprises. Following the raid, details of the fraud surfaced, prompting Kantariya’s detention.

Kantariya, a Rajkot resident who operated a copper trading business in Rajkot, Surat, Bharuch, Vapi, Junagadh, and Bhavnagar, was arrested under Section 132(1)(c) of the GST Act. The central GST department had earlier accused him of tax evasion.

The matter came to light in November after SGST authorities conducted a search and seizure operation in Surat, Rajkot, Bharuch, Vapi, Junagadh, and Bhavnagar. A raid on his office found a GST fraud committed by producing fake bills for the purchase of copper that was never sold.

The operation aimed at 14 companies, including Fortune Copper Industries and Infinity Exim. The fraud allegedly resulted in a loss of Rs.34 crore to the government.

Sandip Varani, a partner at Fortune Copper Industries, was detained in the same case on November 13. Varani was charged with GST fraud of Rs.19.46 crore.

Kantariya was arrested by the GST department on Tuesday, according to recent developments. Kantariya committed a Rs.186 crore fraud by creating fake bills and claiming input tax credits for them.

Pragnesh Kantariya was found to have violated Section 132(1)(a) of the GST Act by improperly claiming input tax credits. Kantariya unlawfully claimed an input tax credit of Rs.34 crore based on illegal transactions of Rs.186 crore, according to preliminary document verification from M/s Infinity Exim.