Massive Fake Aadhar and PAN Card Scam Exposed in Rajasthan

₹524 Crore GST Scam Busted in Jodhpur: Bogus Firms, Forged IDs, and a Nationwide Trail of Deceit

Jodhpur, Rajasthan – In what officials are calling one of the most audacious GST frauds unearthed in recent years, a syndicate operating out of a small E-Mitra kiosk in Jodhpur is at the heart of a massive ₹524 crore tax scam that spans across 22 states.

The gang, led by a group of local operators with deep digital access, allegedly used fake Aadhaar and PAN cards—crafted with alarming precision—to set up 240 shell firms on paper. These firms never traded anything real, but collectively claimed ₹278 crore in fraudulent tax credits, exploiting GST registration loopholes and weak ID verification systems.

Who’s Behind It?

The crackdown, which began in earnest on June 20, 2025, has so far led to seven key arrests. Among them:

Praveen Panwar, the man running the E-Mitra centre in Masuria's UIT Colony—now suspected to be the syndicate’s digital hub.
Saddam Hussain, a local from Shobhavton ki Dhani.
Kishan Singh, Ranveer Singh, and Gajendra Singh, all hailing from Bhatiyan Ki Dhani in Padsala.
Chailaram Meghwal of Sanwat Kuan Khurd in Bawdi Tehsil.
Amit Bhati and Chelaram, who reportedly played logistical and documentation roles.

Investigators from the cyber and crime branches say these men weren’t acting alone—they relied heavily on forged documents, fake seals, and a ready black market for ID creation.

Special credit, authorities say, goes to Cyber Cell Head Constable Prem Chaudhary and DST Constable Dalaram, whose fieldwork and digital tracing helped connect the dots between fake documents, GST numbers, and ghost bank accounts.

How the Scam Worked

What began as a local E-Mitra operation evolved into a pan-India network that created a shadow economy on paper. Here's how they pulled it off:

Create Fake Identities: Using forged Aadhaar and PAN cards (with falsified seals and signatures), the gang laid the groundwork for GST registration.
Fabricate Business Proofs: They whipped up rent agreements and manipulated Aadhaar-linked addresses to pass off random premises as official business locations.
Register Fake Firms: These 'paper-only' companies were then assigned GSTINs—many via the Udyam portal, meant to empower small businesses.
Move the Money: The team opened dummy current accounts and used prepaid SIM cards to run operations undetected.
Issue Bogus Invoices: These ghost firms didn’t sell or buy anything. They just issued fake GST bills to pass on fraudulent Input Tax Credit (ITC).
Sell the Toolkit: According to police, documentation kits were sold for ₹20,000–₹30,000 per firm to other GST evaders.

The operation spread across Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and 16 other states—quietly siphoning off taxpayer money.

Regulatory Action and Ground Reality

Once the scam came to light, the Devnagar Police Station filed an FIR on its own (suo motu). Authorities wasted no time:

152 GST registrations have been cancelled so far—including 16 in Rajasthan and 9 within Jodhpur city.
On-ground inspections at 8 firm addresses in Jodhpur confirmed what officials suspected—there was no sign of actual business activity.
Investigators used PAN numbers, mobile phones, and emails to profile 44 of the fake firms. Others were traced through a mix of digital forensics, GSTN data, and telecom trails.

Professional Hand in the Game?

This wasn’t a street-level scam. The network appears to have had support from professional enablers, including Chartered Accountants based in Mumbai and Kolkata, and even a Company Secretary, who allegedly helped establish and legitimize these firms on paper.

Several digital devices have been seized—containing forgery templates, ID databases, and fake seals—helping law enforcement understand how deeply embedded this fraud was within the GST ecosystem.

The Bigger Picture: Cracks in the System

While the arrests and cancellations are a win for enforcement, the episode reveals glaring holes in India’s tax compliance infrastructure, particularly around third-party facilitation points like E-Mitra. These decentralized service centres—designed to bring governance closer to people—are now under the scanner.

Officials are calling for stricter vetting of document facilitators, robust KYC enforcement, and better digital traceability to prevent such rackets in the future.

At a Glance: Anatomy of the Scam

Aspect	Details
Fake Firms Created	240 (across 22 states)
Fraud Value	₹524 crore
Fake ITC Claimed	₹278 crore
Registrations Cancelled	152 (Statewide), 16 in Rajasthan, 9 in Jodhpur
Documents Forged	Aadhaar, PAN, Rent Agreements, Bank Seals
Professions Implicated	E-Mitra Operators, CAs, Company Secretary
Arrests Made	7 (as of June 2025)
Tools Used	Dummy bank accounts, fake SIMs, digital forgeries
Key Evidence	Laptops, forged IDs, digital trails, seal templates

What Lies Ahead?

The trail is still unfolding. With GSTN, Income Tax, and state enforcement agencies coordinating investigations, more arrests and cancellations are expected in the coming weeks. If anything, this scam has put the spotlight back on the need for intelligent compliance systems—ones that don’t just verify, but continuously monitor and flag high-risk GST registrations.