Commercial Taxes Department cracks down on tax evasion in Bengaluru

Bengaluru: The Commercial Taxes Department conducted major inspections in over 20 commercial locations in Bengaluru and uncovered several instances of tax evasion, officials said on Tuesday.

The inspection drives in CBD, including Chickpet, Avenue Road, Cottonpet, Balepet, and BVK Iyengar Road, were conducted by the Enforcement Wing (South Zone). The inspections targeted traders dealing in electrical and electronic goods, textile products, ready-made garments, automobiles, and handicraft items, officials said.

“The department uncovered several instances of tax evasion where traders were selling goods without issuing invoices to customers. These violations were taken seriously, and penalties have been imposed under the provisions of the GST Act. Additionally, officials exposed a network of traders who operated unregistered warehouses and engaged in illegal business activities without declaring them to the department, resulting in further penalties,” a press release said.

“Investigations revealed that certain traders were illegally transporting goods into the state from other states, such as electrical and electronic items, textiles, garments, automobiles, and handicrafts, without proper invoicing and selling them within the state, thereby causing significant revenue loss to the state exchequer. The department’s intensive multi-dimensional inspections have brought to light a large-scale tax evasion network involving goods worth several crores of rupees,” it added.

Officials said that the department also busted several cases of tax evasion related to iron and steel, including Thermo Mechanically Treated (TMT) goods used in construction activities and metal scrap used in the production of TMT goods. Over the past month, more than 75 goods transport vehicles involved in interstate trade evading taxes were seized, and penalties were levied under the GST Act.

“The department is closely monitoring such tax evasion activities that harm the state's revenue and has adopted a zero-tolerance approach. It remains committed to conducting regular inspections based on information from various sources to recover the evaded taxes,” said L Chandrashekar Nayak, Additional Commissioner, Enforcement Wing (South Zone), Commercial Taxes Department.