Bangalore dealers evade tax worth Rs 110 Crore

MANGALORE:  Dealers going any length to evade tax have begun to feel the heat, with Enforcement Wing of the State Commercial Tax Department tightening the screws in the system to eliminate fraudulent practices. For instance, by ensuring regular checks since September, the department busted a thriving racket and unearthed transactions worth `110 crore, done without any tax liability. Sources in the department told Express that the racket came to light when they physically began verifying the movement of goods. On matching the returns filed by Bangalore- based dealers of commodities like granite, iron and steel, with online data the department discovered that without the movement of goods, fake bills were generated to claim input tax. Sources said dealers in highly evasive-prone commodities like granite, floated dealers to generate fake bills for them regularly. Dealers using these fake bills obtained refund in the form of input tax from the government. The sheer volume of transaction involved without tax liability in Bangalore alone, has left the department surprised.Taking a serious note of such fraudulent practices, department filed as many as 20 cases at different police stations in Bangalore against the dealers transacting in iron, steel and granite.