Ahmedabad police arrest journalist in GST ‘scam’
The Ahmedabad Crime Branch on Tuesday arrested senior journalist Mahesh Langa in an alleged GST-related fraud case. Officials said Rs.20 lakh cash, some gold jewellery, and land papers were recovered from Langa’s house. Mahesh Langa is a Gujarat-based correspondent of ‘The Hindu’ newspaper.
The arrest came after the crime branch raided 14 places in Ahmedabad, Junagadh, Surat, Kheda, and Bhavnagar following a complaint by the Central GST department. The crime branch said it received information that over 200 fake companies were allegedly involved in fraud through fake input tax credits. The firms reportedly used forged identities and documents to facilitate the evasion of duties.
The Central GST found forged documents in the name of Mahesh Langa’s wife and father that were used for suspicious transactions in those fake firms. Mahesh Langa recently wrote many critical articles against the Modi government. His report on the diamond sector and the role of Russian import of raw materials in the diamond polishing business has not gone well with many in government, said many journalists, adding that his wife and family’s business thus became the target. Apart from Gujarat, Mahesh Langa has been handling Prime Minister’s Office-related reporting also for the past 10 years.[1]
“Initial findings suggest a large-scale conspiracy aimed at defrauding the government of significant revenue, potentially amounting to crores of rupees, through fake billing, fraudulent documentation, and misrepresentation,” the crime branch said in a statement. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ajit Rajian said the senior journalist was arrested after detailed questioning. The crime branch has also registered an FIR against several persons and entities, including Dhruvi Enterprise, Om Construction, Raj Infra, Haresh Construction Company and DA Enterprise in connection with the case.
Reference:
[1] Gujarat journalist arrested in ‘GST scam’ case over ‘firm linked to brother’ – Oct 08, 2024, Newslaundry
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