Hyderabad: A daily-wage worker in Bhadradri Kothagudem district, Telangana, was shocked after receiving a notice from the commercial tax officials asking him to pay Rs 22.86 lakh as pending Good and Services Tax (GST) from business transactions made in 2022.

J Venkateswarlu, a resident of Chandrugonda mandal headquarters, received a notice from the assistant commissioner of commercial taxes in Vijayawada, demanding GST payment for a granite business operated in 2022 under the name Bhagyalakshmi Enterprises, which was registered at an address in Vijayawada.

As Venkateswarlu arrived at the given address on Wednesday, he found no office there.

Wondering how a license was issued for running a granite business in his name without his knowledge, Venkateswarlu informed officials that he had applied for a PAN card only six months ago and did not possess one in 2022 when the alleged business transactions occurred.

Officials suspect that someone may have misused his Aadhaar card to obtain a PAN card and conduct transactions under his identity.

With an unexpected and massive GST burden falling on him, Venkateswarlu has been running from pillar to post, trying to convince authorities that he had no involvement in the granite business dealings made in his name.