In a recent case, the Punjab and Haryana High Court allowed regular bail on completion of investigation on the allegation of Value Added Tax ( VAT ) refund worth Rs.24 lacs through forged and fabricated documents.
Mahesh Kumar Alias Mahesh Bansal, the petitioner filed the petition under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for the grant of regular bail to the petitioner in case FIR No.529 dated 27.07.2016 registered for the offences punishable under Sections 406, 420, 419, 465, 467, 468, 471 of IPC at Police Station City Sirsa, District Sirsa.
FIR was registered based on the complaint lodged by Excise and Taxation Officer Ward No.5, Sirsa against Shashi Bala proprietor of M/s Paras Trading Company alleging that the said firm got a refund of Value Added Tax (VAT) worth Rs.24 lacs approximately by producing forged and fabricated documents by showing movements of goods which were only shown in the paper.
During the investigation, Shashi Bala suffered a disclosure statement that actually the aforesaid firm was run by the present petitioner and resultantly the petitioner was nominated as accused and arrested on 04.04.2024. Counsel for the petitioner submitted that the petitioner is falsely implicated in the present case and has nothing to do with the business run by M/s Paras Trading Company.
Counsel for the petitioner further submitted that in case the aforesaid firm has violated the provisions of the Haryana Value Added Tax Act, 2003 which is a special enactment, then the competent authority is authorized to impose a penalty on the said firm as per the provisions of special enactment and that no offence under IPC is made out against the present petitioner.
Counsel for the petitioner further submitted that similarly, another 16 FIRs are registered against the petitioner out of which he is granted the concession of bail in 10 cases. It is further submitted that on completion of the investigation, a challan has been presented but it will take time for the trial to conclude presently petitioner is lodged in judicial custody and no purpose is going to be served by prolonging custody of the petitioner for any longer period.
The petition is resisted by the State counsel who on instructions from ASI Abhay Ram submits that M/s Paras Trading Company got a refund of more than Rs.24 lacs from the concerned department by producing fake and fabricated documents and the said refund was claimed by the firm in collusion with the present petitioner whose name surfaced during the investigation of the case.
State counsel further submitted that the refund was related to assessment year 2013-2014 whereby the FIR was registered in 2016. It is further submitted that the petitioner is also involved in a number of other criminal cases of a similar nature and that no ground is made out to grant him bail at this stage when charges are still to be framed by the trial Court. However, State counsel has not disputed the fact that on completion of the investigation challan has been presented.
Initially, the FIR was registered against M/s Paras Trading Company and during an investigation, the name of the petitioner surfaced in the disclosure statement made by co-accused Shashi Bala. The relevance and admissibility of the disclosure statement suffered by the co-accused against the present petitioner is the subject matter of trial and all the offences are triable by the Court of Judicial Magistrate First Class.
Further on completion of investigation challan has been presented but trial is yet to commence. The culpability, if any, of the petitioner will be unfolded and determined at the time of trial.
A single bench of Justice Karamjit Singh without commenting on the merits of the case, allowed the petition and the petitioner was ordered to be released on regular bail subject to his furnishing bail bonds/surety bonds to the satisfaction of the trial Court/Chief Judicial Magistrate/Duty Magistrate concerned.
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