News summary:
In November 2025, the Income tax Department carried out nation wide raid of restaurants in connection with tax evasion.
During the exercise, it was found that several restaurants were engaged in
--> deletion of bulk bills and
--> other modifications to suppress the actual sales.
what led to this raid?
Advanced analytics of transactional data obtained from sources including GST filings, UPI payments, and digital billing logs, from about 1.77 lakh restaurants in the F&B sector was carried out using AI-enabled analytical tools.
The data was compared with the turnover declared in their IT returns. The analysis revealed large-scale under-reporting of income.
--> In some cases, recorded sales were not fully reflected in financial accounts or tax filings, and
--> certain transactions were excluded from reported sales.
Details of Raid:
Consequently, on 8 March 2026, a nationwide survey was conducted on 62 restaurants across 46 cities in 22 States.
On a preliminary basis, the exercise revealed suppression of sales amounting to around Rs. 408 crore. Investigations in this regard are said to be underway as per PIB's press release.
what's the Action taken:
The Department continues to emphasise voluntary compliance and a trust-based approach.
Hence, It has commenced the SAKSHAM NUDGE campaign to guide and advise taxpayers to correct their mistakes.
The press release confirmed that, in the first phase, emails and messages will be sent to the identified 63,000 restaurants, requesting them to update their returns under Section 139(8A) before 31 March 2026.