THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Sales suppression to the tune of over Rs 100 crore was unearthed by the state Goods and Service Tax (GST) department following raids in jewellery shops in Thrissur, in a major operation codenamed ‘Arkenstone’.

The raids, which began at 4.30pm on August 26, concluded the next day. They were carried out by around 200 officers from the State GST Intelligence and Enforcement wing, the additional commissioner of GST said in a statement. Simultaneous searches were conducted at 42 locations, including the establishments and residences of 16 jewellery traders in the district.

During the operation, 36kg of unaccounted gold stored illegally was seized, officials said. As per initial estimates, the department has already recovered over Rs 2 crore in tax and penalties. The state GST commissioner said strict action would continue against those involved in tax evasion.

The operation was named Arkenstone after the precious jewel in JRR Tolkien’s children’s fantasy novel, ‘The Hobbit’. In October last year, a similar drive codenamed ‘Torre del Oro’ was conducted in which the department raided 75 places in Thrissur, seizing over 100kg of unaccounted gold from 35 jewellery firms.