Jaipur resort files FIR against OYO, CEO Ritesh Agarwal after getting wrong GST notice of Rs 2.66 crore

A Jaipur-based resort has filed a police complaint against hospitality giant OYO and its founder and CEO Ritesh Agarwal, alleging inflated billing practices that led to a wrong goods and services tax (GST) notice of Rs 2.66 crore.

According to the Indian Express report, The FIR, lodged at Ashok Nagar police station last week, was filed by Madan Jain, associated with Samskara Resorts, who has accused Oravel Stays Pvt. Ltd., which operates as OYO, of cheating, criminal breach of trust, forgery, and conspiracy under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

According to the complaint, OYO allegedly inflated the resort's annual turnover by fabricating thousands of fake bookings under the name of Samskara Resort. This, Jain claims, formed the basis for the GST department's show-cause notice, which includes both tax liability and penalties.

Disputed transactions and timeline

Jain said that Samskara and OYO entered into a one-year agreement on April 18, 2019, to list the resort on OYO's booking platform. However, the FIR alleges that OYO also included bookings for fiscal years 2018–19, 2019–20, and 2020–21—well beyond or before the contract's scope.

While Samskara claims to have received only Rs 10.95 lakh in business from OYO during the agreed period—and paid applicable GST on that sum—the Ritesh Aggarwal-led company reportedly filed records showing a business volume of Rs 22.22 crore, leading to the hefty tax demand.

Industry-wide concerns

The issue appears to go beyond a single property. The report further said that Husain Khan, president of the Hotel Federation of Rajasthan, said nearly 20 hotels in the state have received GST notices due to what he described as inflated billing practices by OYO.

“OYO has had a poor record with hoteliers,” Khan said. “Four years ago, we launched a protest where 125 hotels put up banners refusing OYO bookings. Unfortunately, such disputes continue to emerge.”

The complaint names Ritesh Agarwal, founder and Group CEO of OYO, along with several others. OYO has yet to issue a formal response to the FIR.