Mumbai: The sessions court has refused to grant anticipatory bail to city-based businessman Rajesh Bhansali, who is allegedly involved in GST fraud amounting to over Rs 12 crore. His brother, Jayesh, however, has already been arrested by the department.
Rajesh is a partner at M/s Nascent Pipe and Tubes, along with other co-accused individuals. Based on intelligence gathered by the respondent's officers, it was discovered that Nascent was fraudulently availing input tax credit (ITC) using bogus invoices issued by M/s Sundirect Steels Private Limited, prompting a search operation.
It is alleged that 15 suppliers of Sundirect Steels are suspected shell companies created to fraudulently pass on ITC. These firms reportedly issued fake invoices to Sundirect Steels, which then allegedly transferred the ITC to Nascent.
Evidence collected during the investigation indicates that Sundirect Steels did not supply goods to Nascent. It is alleged that Nascent availed ITC worth Rs 12.92 crore based on tax invoices issued by Sundirect Steels without any actual supply of goods.
Bhansali’s lawyer Ravi Hirani argued that Nascent is a purchaser and has paid GST to Sundirect Steels, which voluntarily closed its GST registration after shutting down. He claimed that all transactions were genuine.
The prosecutor, Arun Pathak, contended that during the investigation, the transporter who issued the receipts denied transporting goods as disclosed in the documents.
After hearing both sides, the sessions court noted that the transporter, in his statement, admitted to issuing consignment notes under Jayesh’s instructions.
The court further observed that the investigation conducted by the respondent prima facie revealed that Sundirect Steels was a fictitious company used solely for passing fraudulent ITC. Based on these findings, the court rejected Rajesh's plea for anticipatory bail.
