The Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) has exposed a major GST evasion case involving unaccounted silver trading worth over ₹600 crore in Surat. Officials have detected tax evasion of around ₹18 crore and arrested bullion trader Yatin Shah, who has been sent to judicial custody.
According to investigators, the alleged cash-based silver trade had been operating for nearly three years from a small 200-square-foot shop in Choksi Bazaar at Bhagal in the walled city area. During searches conducted in October 2025 at Sumati Silver and Shah’s residence, officials seized “kachha” (informal) challan books and other records that indicated silver was being sold without proper tax invoices.
Authorities said large quantities of silver bullion and finished items were traded without billing, and the transactions were linked to entities connected with leading jewellers. The role of the downstream jewellery trade generated through these cash deals is still under investigation. Officials noted that the probe has been ongoing for over four months, with limited cooperation from the accused.
Since precious metals attract 3% GST, such large-scale cash transactions can lead to significant tax evasion at both manufacturing and retail levels, resulting in substantial revenue losses due to the high value of silver.