PANAJI: Taking a stern view of tax evasion in the state, chief minister Pramod Sawant on Friday said that those dodging indirect taxes will be dealt with severely and will be arrested.
The Goa GST intelligence unit and enforcement wing has been asked to track down taxpayers who have pending dues, Sawant said at the inaugural of the new GST Commissionerate building at Altinho.
“Those who don’t pay taxes will be arrested,” Sawant said. “People who owe the state Rs 20 crore or similar amounts should not wait for us to act.”
On Thursday, Goods and Service Tax (GST) officers made their first arrest for evasion of GST and VAT since 2017. Mukhtar Shaikh and Maheed Xec were arrested for defaulting on Rs 20.9 crore in taxes. The two directors of a Verna-based automobile retailer owe the state department of commercial taxes Rs 20.9 crore towards GST and VAT of Rs 11.5 crore including tax, interest and penalty. The accused, who have been charged with offences committed under Section 132 (1) (c) and Section 132 (1) (d) of the Goa Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, were released on bail.
Sawant and state GST commissioner Hemant Kumar said that the GST economic intelligence unit and enforcement wing have begun taking proactive measures to ensure recovery of taxes.
The chief minister said that many commercial taxpayers continue to avoid paying tax, which in turn affects the state government’s functioning. “For the first time someone has been arrested for not paying taxes. Those who don’t pay taxes will be arrested. They cannot hide from the government any more because the enforcement wing is now working very well,” he said.
Sawant said that there are firms in Goa which owe the state government over Rs 20 crore each. “If they pay the tax on time it will benefit the government. They have a responsibility to be responsible citizens as they enjoy the facilities of the country. I request them not to bring political pressure on the staff once penalty is imposed or action is taken,” he said.
Under the earlier VAT regime, there were 28,000 commercial tax payers in Goa, but since the introduction of GST, the government has been able to identify additional commercial entities with the total number of indirect tax payers in Goa touching 43,000.
Kumar said that the economic intelligence unit has been able to plug leakages and curb evasion. “We have been able to recover around Rs 15 crore through enforcement activities. The department is also monitoring the big tax payers who contribute major taxes and is doing a sectorwise analysis by taking data from income tax and other government departments,” he said.
