The Delhi High Court stayed the order rejecting the Bail of a person accused of wrongful availment of Input Tax Credit (ITC) worth Rs.27.05 Crores.
According to the respondent, DGGI, the petitioner, Amit Gupta was the key person in M/s Brilliant Metals Pvt. Ltd., M/s Progressive Alloys India Pvt. Ltd and M/s JBN Impex Pvt. Ltd. and he devised a mechanism to claim ITC on the strength of bills of various suppliers which were non-existing and fictitious.
The respondent authority contended that out of more than Rs.212 crores ITC availed by the petitioner, at least ITC 27.05 crores were fraudulent. The petitioner was arrested on the complaint of the respondent on 1st December 2019 and granted bail vide order dated 23rd December 2019. The direction imposed at the time of grant of bail on the petitioner was that he shall deposit the amount of ₹2.70 crores with the respondent department latest by 6th January 2020 besides joining the investigation and not tampering with evidence or influencing the witnesses in any manner. Petitioner was also directed not to leave the country without prior permission of the Court.
While complying with the order, the petitioner submitted ₹1.10 cash ledger debit and debited ITC ledgers worth ₹1.60 crores which were placed before the then learned CMM vide the details dated 6th January 2020 and accepted as noted in the order of the learned CMM dated 21st January 2020. Immediately thereafter, the respondent filed an application on 24th January 2020 claiming that the ITC ledger worth ₹1.60 crores could not be accepted as the ITC ledgers were under a cloud. The learned CMM vide the impugned order declined to accept the ITC ledger worth ₹1.60 crores and canceled the bail of the petitioner, issuing non-bailable warrants against him.
The Single Judge bench of Justice Mukta Gupta noted that the petitioner appears to have availed ITC worth more than ₹212 crores in M/s Brilliant Metals Pvt. Ltd., more than ₹21 crores in M/s Progressive Alloys India Pvt. Ltd., and more than ₹27 crores in M/s JBN Impex Pvt. Ltd. totaling to ₹260 crores availment. To date, the case of the respondent is that the petitioner has availed ineligible ITCs to the tune of ₹27.05 crores, thereby implying that at the moment there is no material before the respondent that ITC’s worth around 233 crores are also fraudulent.
While listing the matter on 21st September 2021, the court deemed it fit to stay the impugned order till the next date of hearing.
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