No chance of GST violations in TGBCL

(My article which remained unpublished)

DC Correspondent

 Hyderabad, Sept. 26: The interesting and intriguing part of the Rs 1,400 crore alleged GST evasion scam that was unearthed by the commercial tax department is of this Rs 400 crores has been evaded by the public sector entity that is the Telangana Beverages Corporation Limited (TGBCL). The inclusion of publicly owned entities has raised eyebrows.

As public entities cannot pay bribes officially, how and why these entities were allowed to evade paying GST is a point for investigation. How these allegations would unfold and who must have pocketed the amount if any is the moot question. The other public entities that have been found to be charged in the same FIR for evading GST are GHMC, TRANSCO, LIC, L&T metro rail, TGTS (Telangana Technological services) and Telangana Fibre Net Corporation.       

However sources in the TGBCL aver the modus operandi of its operations does not leave any scope for any manipulation by the corporation. Payments are all made to the treasury account in the SBI.  The end customer for the corporation is the retailer who pays money in the form of challan to the treasury in the finance department and collects an indent. The challan is matched by the software and then stock is given.

Payment to the supplier for the corporation that is breweries or distilleries are also paid by the finance department treasury. The payment is made by the corporation every week apportioning the income under VAT and excise duty heads. All through the money remains under different heads of the finance department and not in the corporation accounts.

There is no liquid cash involved anywhere. The salaries, pensions and office expenses of the corporation employees are paid through a grant-in aid by the finance department, an official informed.

The corporation does not have either assets or liabilities as they have been taken over by the government. Another fall out of this entire episode has been the reported proposal by the excise department to show the VAT income generated by them on sale of liquor under their own head in the finance department as it is generated by the work of their staff all through.  

The corporation has so far not received any notice from the government in the Rs 400 crores alleged GST evasion issue. Three probes are now underway namely by the CID, ED and a high-powered committee headed by the former commissioner of the commercial tax department.

 Another outcome of this has been the central GST officials addressing a letter to the state GST officials demanding details on evasion of Rs 1,400 crores GST scam seeking their share of Rs 700 crores. They have also sought names of the businesses facing allegations. (G Ram Mohan)