Messi deal gets murkier as 3 GST officials get charge memos

Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 17 (AHN) The Kerala GST Department has issued charge memos to three officials over alleged lapses in dealing with tax evasion in the controversial 2025 Reporter Broadcasting Company-Messi (Argentina football team deal), in which nearly Rs 22 crore in tax was found to be payable.

The charge memos were issued by the GST Commissioner, with an Intelligence Officer attached to the Kanhangad office among those facing departmental action.

The enquiry is examining the alleged lapses by the officials and the failure to take effective steps to recover the tax after the evasion was detected.

The GST Department had earlier found tax irregularities in the financial transactions undertaken by Reporter Broadcasting Company in connection with its agreement to bring the Argentina football team to Kerala.

The department’s assessment was that tax due on the amount transferred by the sponsor had not been collected.

The tax liability was estimated at around Rs 22 crore, making the transaction one of the significant tax-evasion cases to come under the department’s scrutiny.

Significantly, the alleged tax evasion had been detected during the tenure of the Pinarayi Vijayan government.

Despite the detection, however, stringent action was not taken at the time to ensure recovery of the tax amount, according to the findings now under examination.

The departmental proceedings against the three officials are expected to focus on whether there were deliberate lapses or failures in the discharge of their responsibilities after the tax irregularity came to light, and why steps were not taken to realise the substantial amount due to the exchequer.

The Argentina deal had attracted considerable attention after Reporter Broadcasting Company entered into arrangements linked to bringing the world champions to Kerala.

The financial transactions associated with the proposed visit subsequently came under the GST Department’s scanner.

The latest action against the officials has brought renewed focus on the handling of the tax-evasion finding and the circumstances under which recovery proceedings were allegedly delayed.

The charge memos mark a significant step in the departmental enquiry, even as the responsibility for the alleged lapses and the precise reasons for the failure to recover the tax will be determined through the proceedings.