K Chandrasekhar Rao orders strict action for forging tax challans

Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao has ordered stringent action against those involved in forged manual challans in the Commercial Taxes department and other documents in Nizam-bad district and other places.

Mr Rao has also asked principal secretary Somesh Kumar to transfer all long-serving officials working in the commercial taxes and stamps and registration departments in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy district.

Taking a serious note of the multi-crore scam, Mr Rao held a high-level meet with finance minister Etala Rajender, chief secretary S.P. Singh, among others.

The CM asked officials to check whether any Bodhan-type scam prevailed in other districts and bring the culprits to book.

He said that the commercial taxes department, which accrues finances in abundance to the state, should work effectively and there was no place for corruption in his government.

“We achieved the state with a lot of hard work. We should not compromise on putting a stop to corruption. This is a malady of the former governments.  Though we have reformed the administration, yet some people are taking undue advantage of our kindness,” he said.

The CM added, “We have to catch such thieves and ensure that there is no scope for corruption in the future. Any atmosphere of corruption should not prevail in our state.”

In Nizamabad district, commercial tax officials and tax consultants had allegedly encouraged 114 rice millers to evade VAT in 2012 and 2014 by producing fake challans and stamp papers with forged signatures. The state government lost '65 crore in revenue.