Zomato lands in soup, faces Rs 8.6 crore penalty notice from…

Last month, Zomato was criticised for allegedly delivering food too quickly. A Gurgaon user ordered galauti kebab from a store 500 kilometers away, and Zomato delivered it in less than 30 minutes. And now, the Deputy Commissioner of State Tax of Gujarat has issued a penalty notice for Goods and Services Tax (GST) to Zomato, the online food delivery app. The company has received a demand order for Rs 4,11,68,604 along with applicable interest and penalty totalling Rs 8,57,77,696. The penalty is due to the overutilisation of input tax credit and underpayment of GST. 

Zomato stated that the action taken is based on an adjudication order issued under Section 73 of the CGST Act, 2017, and GGST Act, 2017. The order requires payment of GST totaling Rs 4,11,68,604, along with interest amounting to Rs 4,04,42,232 and a penalty of Rs 41,66,860. These amounts together constitute the total sum of Rs 8,57,77,696, which is around Rs 8.6 crore, 

In December 2023, Zomato received a show cause notice of Rs 402 crore for unpaid GST related to delivery charges. This notice also includes interest and penalty charges for the collection of delivery fees from customers between October 29, 2019, and March 31, 2022.