Mohit Singla Vs Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence (Punjab and Haryana High Court)
Punjab & Haryana HC Grants Bail Because Investigation in GST Fake Invoice Case Was Substantially Complete; GST Fraud Accused Entitled to Bail Because Trial Likely to Take Time; Bail Allowed in Fake ITC Case Because Maximum Punishment Was Only Five Years; Punjab & Haryana HC Relies on Supreme Court Judgments to Grant Bail in GST Evasion Case; Documentary Evidence and Clean Antecedents Favoured Bail in GST Case; Bail Granted in Alleged Fake Invoice Case Because No Further Custodial Interrogation Was Needed; Punjab & Haryana HC Says Bona Fide Purchaser Argument Requires Trial in GST ITC Dispute.
The petitions before the Punjab and Haryana High Court sought regular bail under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 in proceedings initiated by the Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence (DGGI), Ludhiana, for offences under Sections 132(1)(b) and 132(1)(c) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
According to the prosecution, the petitioners were key persons involved in wrongful availment of ineligible Input Tax Credit (ITC) through fake invoices without actual receipt of goods or services, allegedly resulting in tax evasion of ₹23.12 crores in relation to M/s Kanha Concast.
