Ankit Singh Vs State of Chhattisgarh (Chhattisgarh High Court)
The Chhattisgarh High Court, in the case of Ankit Singh Vs. State of Chhattisgarh, granted regular bail to the applicant, Ankit Singh, who was arrested in connection with Crime No. Arr. 02/2025 for offenses punishable under Section 132(1)(b) and (c) of the Chhattisgarh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (SGST Act).
The prosecution alleged that the applicant, a Director of M/s Mahavir Moulds India Private Limited, was involved in the management and financial operations of seven other companies. It was claimed that these entities wrongfully claimed and availed ineligible or fake Input Tax Credit (ITC) totaling approximately ₹23.06 crore (₹23,05,66,216/-) from non-existent, cancelled, or suspected business entities. The Deputy Commissioner of State Tax (BIU) filed the complaint, alleging the acts constituted offenses punishable under Section 132(1)(i) of the SGST Act.
The applicant’s counsel argued that the conditions precedent to establishing any offense under Section 132(1)(b) and (c) were not met, even prima facie, as the quantum of tax involved has not yet been assessed by the authorities and remains appealable. The defense cited the Supreme Court judgment in Vineet Jain v. Union of India, which held that offenses under Section 132(1) of the CGST Act attract a maximum punishment of five years and that the accused should ordinarily be granted bail early. They also referenced a Bombay High Court ruling applying these guidelines to GST arrests.
