Former Oki General Trading director Honey Khatwani has been put at the center of a major tax dispute after the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) moved to recover Sh827.4 million from the company over alleged unpaid taxes tied to transactions conducted during his tenure.
Documents filed before the Tax Appeals Tribunal show the company attributed most of the disputed withdrawals and financial dealings to the period between 2020 and 2024 when Honey Khatwani allegedly controlled the firm’s financial operations.
KRA wants the Tribunal to uphold the assessment, which comprises Sh258.2 million in Pay As You Earn (PAYE), Sh438.4 million in corporation tax, Sh130.6 million in Value Added Tax (VAT) and Sh44,877 in withholding tax.
According to the authority, investigations into the company’s Ecobank and Absa Bank accounts uncovered withdrawals exceeding Sh604 million made by directors and employees during the review period.
“The drawings by the company’s staff and directors from company bank accounts were presumed to be earnings and were therefore subjected to PAYE,” KRA told the Tribunal.
However, Oki General Trading disputed the findings, arguing that some of the transactions involved unauthorized withdrawals and alleged misappropriation of company funds linked to Honey Khatwani’s management period.
The company maintained that KRA improperly classified the disputed withdrawals as employment income despite ongoing criminal and commercial cases concerning the alleged loss of funds.
Honey Khatwani is separately facing criminal proceedings in which he is accused of stealing about Sh356 million from the company between January 2020 and June 2024 while serving as a director.
Court filings in the criminal matter allege that company funds were diverted into personal accounts and later used to establish other businesses.
In the tax dispute, KRA further accused the company of understating imports, failing to account for stock reflected in customs records and claiming purchases for which customs duties were allegedly unpaid.
“The variances indicate that the company received stock items more than those accounted for as purchases in the financial statements,” KRA stated in its filings.
The authority also faulted the company for allegedly failing to produce key documents during the objection process, including payroll records, staff contracts, transfer pricing documents, forensic audit reports and stock reconciliation records.
KRA confirmed the tax assessment through an objection decision issued on July 17, 2025 after concluding that the company had not provided sufficient supporting documentation.
The Tribunal also received company registry documents connected to related commercial disputes involving firms allegedly associated with the contested transactions.
Records from the Companies Registry dated April 7, 2026 identified Sai Nath Ventures Limited as having Kamlesh Parwani and Metrine Vihenda listed as directors and shareholders. The company is registered along Waiyaki Way in Nairobi’s Parklands area.