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A pottery maker in Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh, was shocked when he received a GST notice of ₹1.25 crore. Fraudsters misused pottery seller Mohammad Saeed's Aadhaar and PAN cards to create a fake firm in his name. Anyone can commit fraud using your important documents. To avoid this, use your masked Aadhaar.

Pottery maker receives Rs 1.25 crore GST notice for misuse of Aadhaar and PAN

Aadhar and PAN Card: Falling into the wrong hands can cause serious trouble. A recent fraud case illustrates this. A potter in Rae Bareli district, Uttar Pradesh, received a GST notice of ₹1.25 crore. Yes, it's not uncommon for someone who earns a living by selling ₹2 clay cups and other small clay items to receive a GST notice of ₹1.25 crore. This is nothing but the result of misuse of Aadhar and PAN cards. Mohammad Saeed, a resident of the Harchandpur area, claims he has never run a company or a major business, and suspects a fake firm has been created in his name, using his Aadhar and PAN details.

Pottery maker receives notice of Rs 1.25 crore

After receiving a Goods and Services Tax (GST) notice for ₹1.25 crore, Saeed and his family contacted local authorities. According to Saeed, they don't know anything about the company mentioned in the notice. "We sell a few dozen clay cups and small utensils every day," Saeed said. "We never imagined we could do business worth crores. If my documents have been misused, a proper investigation should be conducted."

Do not give your documents to anyone

According to the notice, a firm is registered in Saeed's name, which shows significant tax liability. The family claims they were never informed of any GST registration or commercial activity involving Saeed. According to Saeed, he never gave his documents to anyone or used them for business purposes.

There should be a strong KYC verification system

The family has appealed to the administration to conduct a detailed cyber and financial investigation to identify those responsible. This incident has once again raised concerns about the security of essential documents and the monitoring of GST registrations. Experts believe that in the era of digital transactions and online registration, more stringent Know Your Customer (KYC) verification systems are necessary to prevent misuse of documents of economically vulnerable people.

Misuse of Aadhaar and PAN

It should be noted that in recent years, several cases have been reported across the country where Aadhaar and PAN details have been misused to create companies and generate fake invoices to claim input tax credits. This appears to be a similar case.

How to keep your PAN and Aadhaar card safe

People should periodically check their CIBIL score to detect misuse of their PAN card. If you need to provide a photocopy of your ID, always provide a masked Aadhaar card. This mask hides the first eight digits, leaving only the last four visible. Furthermore, you can lock your biometrics using the Aadhaar app to prevent misuse.

PC:NBT