A Muradnagar based businessman was arrested on Thursday for allegedly committing GST fraud by using fake bills to claim input tax credit (ITC) worth Rs 3.76 crore. The accused, Mukesh Tomar, had registered a company, TM Enterprises, that he said was specialised in iron, scrap, wood and electronic goods. He said it operated from Crossings Republik. During a survey by the GST’s special investigation branch (SIB), it was found to be a bogus firm. Officials said it had shown a transaction of Rs 25.69 crore in one-and-a-half years. In September 2018, surveys were conducted at 45 firms by the GST department and FIRs were registered against 16 companies registered with the state authority. An FIR was registered at Kavi Nagar police station under sections 420, 467, 468 and 471 on October 16, 2018, officials said.

SIB deputy commissioner Ramesh Kumar Singh Bains said: “The survey was conducted on the basis of the registration of the company done through the department website. During investigation, a cancelled cheque and the ownership document of the company were found to be forged.” The firm had raised counterfeit bills of Rs 23.22 crore during 2017-18 and 2.47 crore in 2018-19. However, in reality, no transaction had been done. The firm tried to provide tax credit benefit of Rs 3.76 crore to the purchasers. The department would now sent a notice to recover the amount, Bains said.