Revenue Intelligence detects Rs 4,389 crore duty evasion by mobile company Oppo

Besides, penal action will be taken against Oppo India, its employees and Oppo China under various provisions of the Customs Act, 1962, the ministry added.
Image used for representational purpose only. (Photo | PTI)
Image used for representational purpose only. (Photo | PTI)

NEW DELHI: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has detected Customs duty evasion to the tune of Rs 4,389 crore by the Indian arm of Chinese mobile company Oppo, the Union finance ministry said on Wednesday. A show-cause notice has been issued to the company to recover the amount.

Besides, penal action will be taken against Oppo India, its employees and Oppo China under various provisions of the Customs Act, 1962, the ministry added. During the course of its investigation, the DRI conducted searches at the office premises of Oppo India and the residence of its key management officials and recovered “incriminating evidence indicating willful misdeclaration in the description of certain items imported by Oppo India for use in the manufacture of mobile phones”.

This resulted in wrongful availment of ineligible duty exemption benefits by Oppo India amounting to Rs 2,981 crore. Besides, the company evaded a Rs 1,408 crore levy by not disclosing its payments of royalty and licence fees to various multi-national companies. According to the Union finance ministry, these payments should have been added to the transaction value of the goods imported by the company. By not doing this, Oppo has violated Section 14 of the Customs Act, 1962, the ministry added.

Oppo India is engaged in the business of manufacturing, assembling, wholesale trading, and distributing mobile handsets and accessories thereof, across India. Oppo India deals in various brands of mobile phones, including Oppo, OnePlus and Realme. In its response to the development, Oppo India however said that it has a “different view” on the charges mentioned in the DRI’s show-cause notice and that it will take appropriate steps, including seeking legal remedies.

“We have a different view on the charges mentioned in the SCN (show-cause notice). We believe it’s an industry-wide issue many corporates are working on. Oppo India is reviewing the SCN received from DRI, and we are going to reply to the notice, presenting our side, and will be working further with the related government departments,” the company said in a statement.

HC relief for Vivo
In a relief to Chinese mobile maker Vivo, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday lifted the Enforcement Directorate freeze on Vivo’s bank accounts on the condition that the company provide bank guarantees of Rs 950 crore and maintain a minimum balance of Rs 250 crore in its accounts

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com