Tax authorities inspected Adani Wilmar premises to check any tax evasion: Himachal official

A Himachal state official said on Thursday that tax authorities inspected Adani Wilmar premises on Wednesday and that they will check if there is any tax evasion at the Adani Group firm.

The Department of State Taxes and Excise has taken some documents into their custody and officials are examining them, said Naresh Chauhan, principal media adviser to the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister. “It was a routine inspection on Wednesday to find out whether there is any tax evasion,” he said Thursday.

The company, engaged in warehousing of Kirana (grocery items), also provides goods to the civil supplies department and police department in the state.

State government officials inspected Adani Wilmar Ltd.’s warehouse and office in northern Himachal Pradesh to find out if there are any tax violations amid scrutiny of Adani Group over a report by US short seller Hindenburg Research.

Adani Wilmar on Thursday released a statement clarifying that Himachal Pradesh GST Department has not found any irregularities in operations and dealings of the company. "One of Adani Wilmar's depot warehouse at Parwanoo, Himachal Pradesh was visited by GST officials yesterday evening. The staff extended their support during this routine inspection, fully co-operating with the officials and local authorities," an Adani Wilmar spokesperson said in a statement on Thursday.

The spokesperson noted that the visit of GST officials at the company's depot warehouse at Parwanoo on Wednesday was just a routine one where no irregularities were spotted. "The officials did not find any irregularities in the operations and dealings conducted by the company. We would like to clarify that the concerns specific to GST payments in cash, citing GST law under Rule 86B, the company is not required to pay the tax liability," the statement said.

"We would like to emphasise that this was a routine inspection carried out by the relevant authorities and there was no raid as previously stated or reported in the media," the spokesperson further said, adding the company was committed to conducting business in a responsible and transparent manner, and all its operations are in full compliance with relevant laws and regulations. Currently, operations at the depot, the spokesperson said, are functioning normally after the GST officials' inspection.

The Himachal Pradesh excise and taxation department late on Wednesday carried out an inspection of a depot of Adani Wilmar Ltd in Parwanoo town of Solan district. The GST officials took stock of the inventories at the godown, besides checking relevant documents. "We have inspected the premises (under SGST Act) to check the stocks, and whether trading activities are taking place. We have checked stocks, and taken some relevant documents, including the rent agreement. Rest will be known after final investigation," G D Thakur, Joint Commissioner Enforcement South Zone Parwanoo said.

The company's entire GST input was adjusted through tax credit but no payment was made in cash, the excise department has said. Seven companies of the Adani Group are doing business in the state.

Adani Wilmar, a joint venture between Adani Group and Singapore-based Wilmaris is a FMCG food company offering most of the essential kitchen commodities for Indian consumers, including edible oil, wheat flour, rice, pulses and sugar. Separately, Adani Wilmar's consolidated net profits during the October-December 2022 quarter increased by 16.4 per cent to Rs 246 crore. In the same quarter of the previous year, it was Rs 211 crore.

The company's revenue from operations during the quarter rose a little above 7 per cent to Rs 15,438 crore from Rs 14,371 crore in the same quarter of 2021. The company attributed the growth to its packaged food industry.

The food and FMCG segment, it said, is the new growth engine of the company and is contributing 15 per cent by volume to the overall sales and delivered 27 per cent volume growth in December 2022 quarter.

Singapore-based Wilmar said last week it will continue to support the Adani Wilmar joint venture.

Shares of Adani Wilmar climbed as much as 5.1% on Thursday to head for a third straight day of increases. The stock has still lost almost 30% this year.