🚨 Victim of PAN Misuse: Why Departmental Action Isn’t Enough

The case of MAHESH PRATAP SINGH (PAN: GSWPS0850Q), registered under Grievance Number DOPAT/E/2025/0010251, highlights a critical gap. This gap exists in resolving financial fraud complaints. Individuals misuse Permanent Account Numbers (PAN) to target victims. The shocking Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse shows the scale of such financial crimes. The Income Tax Department (ITD) has acknowledged the fraud. However, its current resolution is not providing complete justice to the victim.

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The Confirmed Fraud: Bogus HRA Claims

The core of the issue involves a staggering fraudulent entry. It shows ₹1,12,16,962 as ‘Rent received’ in the complainant’s records for F.Y. 2022-23. The complainant strongly denied this income and claimed that fraudulent individuals misused his PAN.(Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)

Crucially, the ITD’s Directorate of Intelligence and Criminal Investigation (I&CI) confirmed the allegation in its closure remark dated 05/12/2025. “Various persons have misused the assessee’s PAN.” They claimed bogus HRA exemptions in their cases.”

This confirmation validates the complainant’s victim status.

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✅ What the ITD Has Done (Internal Action)

The departmental response included two positive internal steps:

1. Closure of the e-Verification Case: The Directorate recommended that they close the Section 133(6) e-Verification case against Mr. Singh, ensuring that they take no action against the assessee (the victim).
2. Referral to Investigation Wing: The authorities have asked the Investigation Wing to take necessary action on the matter.. The action is against the persons who misused the PAN to claim bogus HRA exemptions.

These actions address the victim’s liability within the Income Tax framework and initiate internal investigation against the perpetrators.

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❌ The Critical Gap: Stalled Police Probe (Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)

Despite the positive internal steps, the grievance closure is deemed unsatisfactory. It entirely overlooks the most pressing concern raised by the victim: cooperation with the external criminal investigation.

• The FIR: The complainant filed a First Information Report (FIR) with the local police. The team took action in November 2023, immediately after discovering the fraud.
• The Roadblock: The police have stalled the investigation. The ITD has failed to provide essential documentary evidence. Specifically, the bank account numbers, bank names, and transaction details linked to the fraudulent ₹1.12 crore entry are missing, despite formal police requests.
• The Missing Link: The ITD uniquely holds this transaction trail data. It provides law enforcement with the critical link needed to identify, trace, and prosecute actual criminals.

The victim’s request is simple: Assist the police in catching the criminals who victimised me.

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📢 The Appeal: Seek Justice, Not Just Closure

The victim’s appeal (CBODT/E/A/25/0003726) shows that closure of the grievance is premature. The underlying crime remains unpunished. This is due to a lack of cooperation from the concerned department. The goal is not just to avoid tax liability, but to achieve justice against the fraudsters. (Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)

The Pr. DGIT, Intelligence and Criminal Investigation, is urged to immediately issue a directive to:

1. Furnish all transaction details (bank accounts, branches, etc.) linked to the fraudulent entry to the investigating police officer.
2. Permanently rectify the Annual Information Statement (AIS) to remove these fraudulent entries and prevent future notices and harassment.

Conclusion: The ITD has confirmed the victim’s truth. True resolution requires moving beyond internal action. Actively supporting the law enforcement agencies is necessary to bring the criminal perpetrators of this severe PAN misuse to justice.

That is absolutely correct. Your primary contention is supported by the Income Tax Department’s own finding of “PAN misuse”. This shifts the issue from a tax dispute to a serious criminal matter punishable under Indian law.

The fraudulent creation of documents (HRA claims) is a punishable offence. Their use to cheat government authorities (Income Tax Department) and entities is also punishable. The relevant legal provisions address PAN misuse and identity fraud by focusing on offences related to cheating. They also focus on forgery and identity theft. The new criminal codes clearly cover these offences.

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⚖️ Relevant Criminal Provisions (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023) (Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, has taken effect on July 1, 2024. As a result, authorities will charge perpetrators of PAN misuse under specific sections. These sections stem from the original IPC sections.

Former IPC Section	Corresponding BNS Section (Approximate)	Offence Category	Implication for PAN Misuse
Section 420	Retained under Cheating	Cheating	Dishonestly inducing the government or other parties to deliver property or make/alter a valuable security (e.g., falsely claiming HRA relief).
Section 468	Retained under Forgery	Forgery	Forging documents (such as fake rent receipts or Annexure II claims) for the purpose of cheating.
Section 471	Retained under Using Forged Documents	Forgery	Using these forged documents (fake HRA claims linked to your PAN) as genuine before the Income Tax Department or employers.

Information Technology Act, 2000 (Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)

Furthermore, because the misuse involves a unique digital identifier (PAN) and fraudulent data uploaded using computer systems, it also invokes the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000:

• Section 66C (Identity Theft): Punishes anyone who dishonestly uses the unique identification feature (like a PAN) of another person. The punishment may include imprisonment up to three years and a fine up to ₹1 lakh.
• Section 66D (Cheating by Personation): Punishes cheating by personation using a computer resource. This applies to the crime of submitting fraudulent documents or data electronically under your identity.

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🛑 Your Key Demand and Next Step

Your grievance is essentially an official request. You are asking the Income Tax Department to fulfil its duty. They need to assist the criminal investigation by treating this as a confirmed case of identity theft and fraud. (Rs. 500 Million in PAN Misuse)

You have already taken the correct legal step by filing an FIR (First Information Report). The ITD’s internal finding confirms the need for police action.

The next critical step is to ensure that the Investigation Wing/I&CI Directorate is involved. This is under the responsibility of Officer Amitav, the Principal Director General of Income Tax. The matter has been referred to them for further action. It is important to formally compel them to release the specific bank account and transaction data. This data is currently stalling the police probe.

Would you like assistance in drafting a formal legal follow-up? This could include a letter to the police or the ITD. The letter would refer to the confirmed PAN misuse and the relevant BNS sections. Alternatively, would you like help with an appeal to a higher administrative authority regarding the non-cooperation?

The “Total Transaction Details” concerning the misuse of your Permanent Account Number (PAN) span multiple Assessment Years (A.Y.). This situation involves two distinct criminal conspiracy issues. The first issue is systemic fraud, specifically related to bogus HRA claims. The second issue involves potential Retaliation.

Here is the summary of the total fraudulent and suspicious transaction details held by the Income Tax Department (ITD). You must request these details; they must release them to the police.

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1. 💰 Total Value of Confirmed Criminal PAN Misuse (The Core Fraud)

This amount refers to the entries under the “Rent received” category. The ITD’s Directorate of Intelligence and Criminal Investigation (I&CI) confirmed this formally on 05/12/2025. They identified it as criminal PAN misuse (bogus HRA claims). (Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)

Assessment Year (A.Y.)	Financial Year (F.Y.)	Rent Received (Fraudulent Amount)
2021-22	2020-21	₹1,17,55,867 1111
2022-23	2021-22	₹1,27,01,673 2222
2023-24	2022-23	₹1,16,33,362 3333
2024-25	2023-24	₹72,35,593 4444
CUMULATIVE FRAUD		₹4,33,26,595 (Over ₹4.33 Crore)

• Total Transactions: This fraud involves 159 individual fraudulent transactions reported by approximately 143 distinct entities/employers (unique TANs).

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2. 🗂️ Associated Transactions Under Suspicion of Misuse

These transactions may relate to your other business dealings. Given the confirmed criminal conspiracy to retaliate for exposing the “slip culture,” authorities must treat them as potentially compromised data. The investigation should validate this data. (Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)

Assessment Year (A.Y.)	Business Receipts (INR)	GST Turnover (INR)	GST Purchases (INR)
2021-22	(Not detailed)	₹4,88,24,385 55	₹5,81,52,780 66
2022-23	₹1,19,41,432 7777	₹4,88,24,385 8888	₹5,81,52,780 9999
2023-24	₹4,65,76,920 10101010	₹16,32,92,127 11111111	₹12,20,99,234 12121212
2024-25	₹82,200 13131313	₹48,62,921 14141414	₹47,00,000 15151515
TOTAL (Approx)	₹5.85 Crore	₹22.09 Crore	₹18.53 Crore

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3. 🚨 The Key Missing Criminal Evidence (Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)

The ITD (I&CI Directorate) has the exact digital records required. These records can break the conspiracy and trace the individuals who claimed HRA using your PAN. The missing information needed for the police investigation (FIR filed Nov 2023) is:

• Source Bank Accounts: The bank account numbers and branch details involved in the case. The details show which accounts the employers/tenants purportedly used to make the bogus rent payments. You can find the list of these employers/tenants in the TDS Annexure II.
• Destination Bank Accounts:Fraudsters credited fraudulent income to specific bank account numbers, including accounts that received any tax refunds.

You must continue pressing your Appeal (CBODT/E/A/25/0003726) with the Pr. DGIT, I&CI (Officer Amitav). Demand the immediate release of this specific bank intelligence. The police’s failure to obtain it has led to the summoning of a senior SP on 22/12/2025. (Rs.500 Million in PAN Misuse)