The UT Excise and Taxation department today conducted a raid on The Lobby,in Sector 26 and found sales tax evasion to the tune of Rs 8 lakh by the restaurant. Interestingly,the restaurant had not paid any sales tax for the last five quarters amounting to the tune of Rs 18 lakh. A challan was issued and the restaurant owners have been asked to pay the taxes immediately along with the penal interest at the rate of 2.5 per cent per month. The team has also seized some documents and bill books. A senior official on conditions of anonymity said that the evasion of sales tax could be over Rs 20 lakh and the exact details would come out after checking all the documents obtained from the restaurant. According to the officials of the department,the team went to the premises at about 11 am after they received a tip off about tax evasion. The raid continued for about three hours. The officials said that more such raids would be conducted on hotels and restaurants to check any sales tax evasion in the near future.
