Piyush Jain's arrest memo accessed; Rs 177 cr clandestine material supply exposed

The Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) team arrested Kanpur businessman Piyush Jain, after unaccounted cash, gold and other valuables worth crores was seized from his premises. In the arrest memo of Jain accessed exclusively by Republic Media Network on Wednesday,  it is said the businessman, as is evident from the statement tendered by him, was 'evasive in his submission'

The arrest memo read, "Despite having effected clandestine supply worth crores to various buyers for a period of just 3-4 years, he feigned ignorance regarding the identity of such goods supplied clandestine by him. He also claimed that he could not remember the name of suppliers of raw materials from which his firms manufactured perfumery compound supplied clandestinely." 

Clandestine supply of materials worth Rs 177 crore 

It is pertinent to note that the total transaction of his three firms taken on books for the year 2021 is only Rs 21 crore. However, Odochem Industries and Flora Naturale had clandestinely supplied goods of Rs. 177.45 crores in four years means they have collectively supplied goods of Rs. 45 crore every year without issuing invoices and thereby evaded GST of more than Rs 31.50 crore during the period of the last four years. 

Section 132(1) (a) of the CGST Act, 2017, lays that whoever commits or causes to commit and retain benefits arising out of supplies any goods or service or both without the issue of any invoice, in violation of the provision of the Act or the rules made thereunder, with the intention to evade tax exceeding five hundred lakh rupees, with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five year and fine.

In the arrest memo, it has been noted that as per the investigation conducted so far, the total tax evaded is far more than Rs 5 crore, Piyush Jain is liable for punishment with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years and fine.

Agencies suspect Piyush wasn't working alone

Also, the investigative agency suspect that Piyush was not working alone and had partners. "In view of the modus-operandi being adopted in the case and the involvement of other persons, who are yet to be interrogated and the nature of probable evidence being, it is quite possible that Shri Peeyush Kumar Jain will affect the ongoing investigation in as much as he might get himself or his associates involved in tampering, destroying or disappearing the evidence or affecting the persons playing a vital role in the chain of this modus operandi," the arrest memo read. 

On December 24, the Ahmedabad unit of Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) received intelligence that pan masala and G company Trimurti Fragrance, manufacturers of a branded Gutkha, are transporting materials without any invoices and without paying taxes. DGGI Ahmedabad team started searches on the manufacturer of Pan Masala and their supplier, and that’s how it led to Piyush Jain, the Kanpur-based businessman. 

Arrest memo accessed

Image: Republic World