Anush Kumar Gangwani Vs Union of India (Chhattisgarh High Court)
The Chhattisgarh High Court has rejected the bail application of Anush Kumar Gangwani, who was arrested in connection with a major Goods and Services Tax (GST) fraud case. Gangwani, the applicant, was arrested on September 30, 2023, for allegedly operating and managing four firms—M/s Naresh Traders, M/s Shri Balaji Enterprises, M/s Gurunanak Sales, and M/s Ganpati Transport & Trading—from a single residential address in Raipur. The investigation by the Directorate General of GST (DG CGST) revealed that these firms were involved in a scheme of passing unauthorized Input Tax Credit (ITC) to various taxpayers without the actual supply of goods.
The fraud, initially uncovered through an intelligence report on M/s Radhe Construction, was found to be part of a larger network of fake firms. Another individual, Manoj Kumar Valecha, who operated other fake firms, stated that he had passed on fraudulent ITC to M/s Ganpati Transport & Trading, which was allegedly managed by Gangwani. The prosecution stated that Gangwani’s firms caused a loss to the government exchequer of over Rs. 5.53 crore by fraudulently availing and passing on ITC.
Gangwani’s counsel argued that since the investigation was largely complete and a complaint had been filed, there was no longer a need for his client’s custody. The counsel cited the Supreme Court’s decision in Ratnambar Kaushik v. Union of India to support the bail plea.
