Shivam Goyal Vs Union of India (Allahabad High Court)
Allahabad HC grants bail to Shivam Goyal in ₹31.18 crore fake ITC scam case, citing completed probe, charge-sheet, and co-accused’s bail.
Allahabad: The Allahabad High Court has granted regular bail to Shivam Goyal, an accused in a case involving alleged fraudulent Input Tax Credit (ITC) claims amounting to ₹31.18 crore facilitated through 17 purported shell companies. The court noted that the investigation was complete, the charge-sheet had been filed, and a co-accused in a related complaint had already been granted bail by the High Court. The decision was delivered by Justice Jyoti Lamba.
Shivam Goyal had filed an application under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, seeking regular bail during the pendency of the trial in a case lodged under Sections 132(1)(c) and 132(1)(i) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. These sections pertain to offences related to issuing invoices without supply and availing fraudulent ITC. Mr. Goyal has been in custody since his arrest on September 19, 2024.
The complaint against Mr. Goyal was filed by the Director General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), Zonal Unit, Meerut. According to the complaint, intelligence inputs suggested that M/s Shreeji Metals, a firm operated by the applicant, was involved in availing ineligible ITC based on fake invoices received from non-operational firms, with no actual supply of goods. The ITC passed on by these fake firms was alleged to be inadmissible to the recipient firm, M/s Shreeji Metals.
