Rajasthan’s Poor Potter Horrified to be Linked to Crores-Worth of Tax Evasion with Misused PAN and Aadhaar

A shocking example of identity fraud has been seen in Rajasthan’s Bundi district, where a poor earthenware craftsman has been served a notice by the Income Tax Department for a Rs. 10.61 crore transaction. Despite his income being less than Rs. 1 lakh a year, the man was issued a show cause notice for alleged financial transactions well beyond his capacity.

A native of the rural village of Jhaliji Ka Barana of Bundi, the potter earns his living by producing and selling clay vessels. The alert states that a diamond and gold business company is allegedly run in Mumbai under his PAN card details. The firm is suspected of GST cheating and has humongous income tax arrears.

The person, who had never been to Mumbai and had never heard of such costly transactions, approached a Chartered Accountant upon receiving the notice. CA inquiry led him to discover that a company had been registered under the potter’s name by using his Aadhaar and PAN numbers. Bhumika Trading was a firm registered on 19 March 2020 at Girgaon, Mumbai. What is more, one single proprietorship company had been registered under the very same documents for the purpose of GST as well.

The victim had come with a complaint that he was shocked to hear about the abuse of his identity and had reaffirmed that he never even glanced at half the amount mentioned in the notice. There had also been a complaint lodged at the cybercrime police station that his documents were fraudulently being utilised by some anonymous people for the purpose of opening a company.

Following the complaint, an FIR has been registered, and the case has been launched by the cyber police. The incident is a cold wake-up call regarding identity theft risks and the need for the protection of sensitive data of individuals like PAN and Aadhaar details.