Bogus Firms, Rs 10,000 Crore Transactions: Delhi Businessman Arrested In GST Scam

The Noida police on Wednesday arrested a Delhi-based businessman, his wife and son in connection with its probe into a multi-crore GST scam, officials said.

The police also impounded Mercedes and Audi cars, among other items, belonging to Sanjay Dhingra (55), his wife Kanika (54) and son Mayank (27), they said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Shakti Mohan Avasthy said the accused were held near the DND toll place by a team from Noida Sector 20 police station.

The scam came to light in June 2023 and pertains to revenue loss to the exchequer through input tax credits being claimed by thousands of bogus companies floated using forged documents.

Police investigations have shown involvement of hundreds of bogus firms and transactions of around Rs 10,000 crore from them, and so far over two dozen people have been arrested in the case, according to officials involved in the probe.

"The husband-wife duo and their son -- who own businesses and properties worth hundreds of crores -- are accused of fraudulently claiming around Rs 68 crore through nine bogus firms to avail input tax credit from the government," Mr Avasthy told reporters.

"The accused have been doing this for the last four to five years. They have been at large for the last nine months in connection with the FIR lodged in Noida. During this period they kept changing hotels frequently to evade getting traced and arrested," the officer said.

Mr Avasthy said so far 41 people have been arrested in connection with the GST scam probe.

The officer told the media that the accused had purchased one of their luxury cars from a film star.

Based out of the Punjabi Bagh area of Delhi, the Dhingra family owns businesses with their assets running into hundreds of crores, police said.

The police said an FIR in connection with the case was lodged at the Sector 20 police station of Noida under Indian Penal Code sections 420 (cheating), 467, 468, 471 (all related to forgery) and 120B (party to criminal conspiracy).

In February, the Noida police attached assets of approximately worth around Rs 12 crore of gang members involved in the GST scam and it includes their immovable properties at multiple locations in Delhi.

The case had come to light in 2023 after thugs had applied for registration of bogus companies by fraudulently using the PAN details of a journalist and got two firms registered -- one in Punjab and one in Maharashtra -- while the request for a third in Delhi was rejected by the GST authorities.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)