CRPF jawan gets Rs 10 crore tax notice, discovers fake company opened in his name

A serving CRPF jawan posted in Bastar was stunned to receive an income tax notice claiming a business turnover of Rs 10.51 crore, only to discover that fraudsters had opened a fake company in his name using his PAN card.

The case came to light after the Income Tax Department sent a notice to Vishesh Kumar Kashyap, a resident of Chinari Patel Para in Bakawand, mentioning massive financial transactions for 2019-20 and 2020-21. Kashyap told officials he had never started a company or engaged in any financial dealings, pointing to clear misuse of his PAN.

Police said the fraudsters allegedly registered a company using Kashyap’s credentials and carried out transactions worth over Rs 10 crore. Shocked by the notice, the jawan approached Bakawand police, who have now registered a case against unidentified persons under Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

CYBER CELL TRACES KOLKATA LINK

Bastar Cyber Cell in-charge Geetika Sahu said preliminary investigation suggests a Kolkata-based firm may have used the jawan’s PAN for large-scale financial activity. “We’ve sought documents from the firm and are tracking the network of accounts linked to these transactions,” Sahu said.

PROBE INTO IDENTITY THEFT, SHELL FIRM ANGLE

Officials suspect the case involves identity theft and the creation of a shell company. The cyber cell and local police are verifying how the PAN details were obtained and who benefited from the transactions.

“The scale of the fraud points to a wider network. We are coordinating with the Income Tax Department and financial institutions,” a senior officer said.

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