ED Crackdown on GST Fraud: Raids Across Gujarat Cities

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids in six Gujarat cities over alleged GST fraud. Offices and homes linked to the suspects were searched. The action follows the arrest of journalist Mahesh Langa in the scheme involving shell companies defrauding the government with fake tax credits.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) launched a series of raids spanning 23 locations across six key cities in Gujarat amid investigations into alleged Goods and Services Tax (GST) fraud. On Thursday, multiple agency teams executed these searches across Surat, Rajkot, Junagadh, Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, and Veraval.

According to insiders familiar with the operation, the raids targeted both the workplaces and residences of individuals suspected of involvement. The development occurs days after journalist Mahesh Langa retracted his challenge to a 10-day remand order in the Gujarat High Court, subsequent to his arrest on October 8.

Langa, affiliated with a prominent newspaper, faces charges following a First Information Report (FIR) lodged by the Ahmedabad crime branch. The report claims involvement of numerous entities in defrauding the government via shell companies, producing false input tax credits.

The case unfolded after suspicious transactions emerged, linked to fake enterprises under the identities of Langa's wife and father, utilizing counterfeit documentation. Post-FIR, the crime branch collaborated with Gujarat's Economic Offences Wing to raid 14 sites statewide, including Ahmedabad, Junagadh, Surat, Kheda, and Bhavnagar.

Since the investigation began, eight arrests have been made. The crime branch documentation reveals a network of over 200 fraudulent firms nationwide, all part of a coordinated scheme to exploit tax credits illegally, leveraging fake records and identities for such evasions. (ANI)

(With inputs from agencies.)