A labourer from Domjur in Howrah has filed a police complaint alleging that fraudsters used his personal documents to set up a shell company and evade ₹7 crore in goods and services tax (GST).
The shocking discovery came when a six-member revenue department team from the ministry of finance arrived at Kartick Ruidas’s house on Thursday for a search and seizure operation, believing he owned a company called KD Enterprise that had allegedly evaded crores in GST payments.
Unexpected raid
Ruidas, 34, was at work when officials arrived at his modest Domjur home around 12.30pm.
“One officer called me, claiming to be from the power department, asking about landmarks near my house for a power connection application,” Ruidas told Metro on Monday.
“After I provided detailed directions to my house in Khantora in Domjur, he
called again asking me to come home immediately for interrogation.”
The revenue team’s documents showed that Ruidas was allegedly the owner of KD Enterprise and had “suppressed transactions relating to the supply of goods”. The papers accused him of claiming excess input tax credits and operating warehouses where tax-evaded goods were stored.
Mistaken identity
When confronted, Ruidas showed officials his employee ID card and salary slip, proving he earned just ₹10,000 monthly as a labourer in a small laboratory products manufacturing unit.
“I told them I had no idea about any company. I live with my wife, daughter, and month-old son, barely making ends meet,” he said.
The officials were stunned by the contrast between the modest home and the alleged ₹36 crore monthly turnover company. They spent five hours checking his mobile phones and repeatedly asked whether he had ever given his Aadhaar, PAN card, or electricity bill details to anyone.
The documents showed the fraudulent company had a bank account in Ruidas’s name with a New Delhi address, despite him never having been to that city.
“I showed my identity card, which the company where I work has provided me and told them that I earn around ₹10,000 a month. I even showed my last salary slip. The officers kept asking how my documents got leaked, particularly my electricity bill,” Ruidas said.
“They said the company has a bank account in my name and a Delhi address and that the company’s monthly turnover is ₹36 crore. They showed me the GST number and said I have not paid GST dues to the tune of ₹7 crore,” he said.
In the complaint to the police, Ruidas stated that the bank account number linked to the company with the Delhi address was not his.
He also said that the mobile numbers and email ID mentioned on the GST portal did not belong to him.
Probe begins
Realising the discrepancy, the revenue team left copies of their documents with Ruidas. After consulting a local lawyer on Friday, he filed a complaint with Howrah City Police on Monday, alleging identity theft and document fraud.
“The local police station wasn’t informed when the revenue team conducted their operation, which violates standard protocol,” said a senior Howrah City Police officer.
“We’ve received the complaint and will investigate these serious allegations,” the officer said.
Wider concerns
This case highlights potential vulnerabilities in India’s business registration system, where personal documents of economically vulnerable individuals may be exploited to create shell companies for tax evasion.
The incident raises questions about verification processes and the need for stronger safeguards to protect citizens from such sophisticated fraud schemes.