Customs intelligence alleges Tk 85cr revenue evasion by UAGM BD

Company denies allegations

Customs intelligence officials have accused UAGM BD Limited of evading Tk 85.21 crore in revenue by misusing bonded warehouse facilities, citing idle machinery and discrepancies between declared production and electricity consumption at its factory in Siddhirganj, Narayanganj.

Jashim Uddin Gazi, managing director of the company, denied the allegations, saying all its goods had been exported.

“All our goods have been exported. There is nothing wrong with that,” he told The Daily Star over the phone.

In a press statement yesterday, the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate (CIID) said a team raided the factory on September 9 and found inadequate arrangements for regular production.

The company, a deemed exporter under the Customs Bond Commissionerate, Dhaka (South), had been importing raw materials duty-free under the bonded warehouse facility and declaring exports through back-to-back letters of credit (LCs), the statement said.

The directorate alleged that the company obtained Utilisation Permissions (UPs) and showed exports on paper while selling the imported duty-free raw materials in the domestic market. Acting on confidential information, a preventive team raided the factory at Mijmiji Dakshin Para in Siddhirganj, the agency said.

Officials found production machinery lying idle in heaps and electricity consumption that was grossly inconsistent with the declared production volume, according to the statement.

They also found no alternative electricity connection, solar power system or gas-powered production arrangement that could explain the reported output.

The company had imported PVC flex, PVC film, PET film, artificial leather, duplex board and colour board under the duty-free facility.

After examining import records, production capacity, electricity consumption, UPs and other documents, the directorate prepared a case report alleging revenue evasion of Tk 85.21 crore.

The report has been sent to the Customs Bond Commissionerate, Dhaka (South), for necessary legal action, it said.

The directorate said misuse of bonded warehouse facilities causes revenue losses and puts compliant businesses at a competitive disadvantage.

UAGM’S EXPLANATION

Responding to the discrepancy in electricity consumption, Jashim said the factory had no electricity supply during the inspection and its generator was also out of order.

“There was no electricity at that time, so there was no production then. We had a generator, but the generator was also out of operation,” he said.

He added that the generator had broken down and was sent for repairs amid prolonged electricity problems. Jashim suggested that business rivals might be behind the allegations.

“When we supply goods to a factory, someone else might be suffering business losses, or for some other reason, someone might conspire against us,” he said.

He said the company would respond if it received an official notice.