NAB may take over GST scam case

The Central Board of Revenue (CBR) is likely to hand over the case of Raja Zaraat, head of M/s Bawan Shah Group of Companies, to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to expedite investigation of the multi-million rupees GST scam.
It is learnt on Saturday that collectors of customs conference discussed the progress on the case of Zaraat. During the meeting, tax officials disclosed that the NAB had expressed urgency to investigate the issue. Thus, the top investigation agency may take over the case for completion of the investigation on top priority basis.
The NAB will thoroughly investigate the case based on evidences and documents prepared by the CBR and the directorate-general, intelligence and investigation, customs and excise.
The culprit has tried his level best to obtain bail from various judicial fora, but failed to succeed. The special judge, customs and excise, Karachi, Sindh High Court and even Supreme Court of Pakistan had turned down his bail application. Raja''s application for out-of-court settlement under the alternate dispute resolution (ADR) mechanism has already been rejected by the CBR.
The National Assembly standing committee on finance had informed the CBR chairman and former directorate-general, intelligence and investigation, customs and excise that the pace of investigation is very slow and no senior official has been arrested in the case.
However, the CBR chairman had informed the committee that he would not hesitate in taking action against any individual involved in the Bawan Shah tax fraud case. The board had suspended 10 officers, including appraisers.
Meanwhile, the new director-general, intelligence and investigation would submit an updated report on the case to the board. The new director-general has recently assumed the charge and actively interacting with tax authorities on the case, sources said.
Earlier, the directorate has identified a team of investigating officials, who are expert in the procedure of sales tax refund and have full command of computer programmes to quickly retrieve relevant information from the STARR and PRAL computers for carrying out audit of ''refund sanction files''.
The directorate had informed the CBR that the investigation, covering almost 50 percent fraudulent exports under the Duty and Tax Remission for Export (DTRE) scheme, had been completed so far. Documents relating to about 50 consignments confirming the fraud have also been obtained.