Ahmedabad: All eight accused, including The Hindu’s journalist Mahesh Langa, who were arrested by the Ahmedabad Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) in connection with an alleged GST fraud, were sent to judicial custody on Friday after their police remand ended. The fraud, which involved fake Input Tax Credit (ITC) claims through bogus bills, reportedly caused a loss of crores to the government exchequer.

The case, initially uncovered by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), is being investigated by the Gujarat Police and the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Over 220 benami firms were allegedly created using forged documents in the racket. Two groups of accused were remanded in custody on Friday, including Langa and others who were initially arrested on October 8, along with a second set arrested on October 13. The ED began its investigation on October 17, conducting searches across multiple locations in Gujarat. DeshGujarat