Mahesh Babu AMB Cinemas booked for GST Fraud

Now once again Telugu Superstar Mahesh Babu received GST shock. A couple of months ago, the GST Commissionerate had blocked Mahesh Babu’s bank accounts over an alleged non-payment of service tax of Rs 18.5 lakhs. Later  Mahesh  has sent a legal notice to the GST Commissioner through his legal team. In this notice, Mahesh Bbau questioned GST Commissioner’s decision to seize his two bank accounts without any prior notice. It is known news that recently Mahesh Babu launched world-class superplex AMB Cinemas. Now it has come under the GST department’s scanner. The GST anti-profiteering wing, Ranga Reddy district, on Tuesday served a showcause notice on AMB Cinemas for violating GST norms, by not reducing the price of tickets despite revised tax rates.

The seven-screen ‘superplex’, operating from Sarath City Capital mall on the Gachibowli-Miyapur road, has come under the scanner for profiteering illegally to the tune of Rs 35 lakh by not transferring benefit of the reduced GST rates onto the consumers, as mandated in a notification that came into effect on January 1, 2019.

Starting 1st January, the GST Council had said that tickets worth Rs 100 and above would fall in the 18% tax bracket instead of earlier 28% whereas for tickets less than Rs 100, it would fall in 12% tax bracket instead of earlier 18%.

In a raid conducted on the multiplex, the GST anti-evasion team found out that Mahesh Babu’s AMB Cinemas had not reduced the ticket prices even after the central government’s notification.

On the other-side,  a senior executive of AMB Cinemas, has denied all charges. He said their multiplex was the biggest superplex in the country and that nothing was charged from canteen too. He also claimed that ticket prices were reduced from Rs 200 to Rs 185 due to revised GST rates.

 On the workside, currently Mahesh Babu is busy in his upcoming movie Maharshi, which is scheduled to hit the theaters on 25th April.