GST Evasion Of Rs 345 Crore Detected Against Lottery Distributors Till Nov 2023, Says Govt

Bhagwat Karad, Minister of State for Finance, said in the Lok Sabha that 12 cases of GST evasion involving Rs 345 crore have been detected against lottery distributors since July 2017

Bhagwat Karad, Minister of State for Finance, said in the Lok Sabha that 12 cases of GST evasion involving Rs 345 crore have been detected against lottery distributors since July 2017. Karad in a written reply to Parliament on Monday said Rs 622 crore, including interest and penalty, have been recovered from lottery distributors from July 2017 till November 2023, as reported by the PTI.

"Twelve cases involving GST evasion of Rs 344.57 crore have been detected against lottery distributors and Rs 621.56 crore (including interest and penalty) has been recovered/realised from July 2017 to till November 2023," Karad said. The minister also said the finance ministry had received a reference from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for comments regarding disbursement of prize amount of lotteries through formal banking channel.

"Comments in this regard have been sent to MHA. Using formal banking channel for any kind of transaction, including disbursement of lottery prize, is helpful in mitigating the associated money laundering/terrorist financing/proliferation funding risks in view of the robust banking system and effective regulation/supervision of the regulated entities," Karad said.

Under income tax (I-T) law, a 30 per cent Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) is to be levied on winnings from lotteries, game shows, card games, online games provided the earnings exceed Rs 10,000 in a fiscal.

"The Income Tax Department takes appropriate action in cases involving evasion of tax whenever any credible information/intelligence of violation of provisions of direct tax laws relating to any taxpayer comes to its notice. Such action under direct tax laws includes conducting enquiries, mounting search and seizure or survey action, assessment and consequential action...," Karad added. 

Meanwhile, central tax officers have sent around 33,000 GST notices to businesses for discrepancies in returns filed and short payment of taxes in 2017-18 and 2018-19 financial years, quoting a CBIC official PTI reported.