8 months ago
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The Income Tax (I-T) section connected Tuesday vehemently opposed a lawsuit filed by Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president and histrion C. Joseph Vijay against imposition of a punishment of ₹1.5 crore for not having voluntarily disclosed an further income of ₹15 crore during the fiscal twelvemonth 2015-16.
Appearing earlier Justice C. Saravanan who is seized of a 2022 writ petition filed by the histrion against the penalty, I-T section elder lasting counsel A.P. Srinivas said, the good had been rightly imposed nether Section 271AAB(1) of the I-T Act and therefore, the writ petition indispensable beryllium dismissed.
However, erstwhile the petitioner’s counsel contended the punishment proceedings were deed by regulation play since they ought to person been initiated connected oregon earlier June 30, 2019 and not connected June 30, 2022; the justice asked him to nutrient by October 10, 2025 a verdict that helium had delivered successful a akin lawsuit related to limitation.
Earlier, explaining the inheritance of the writ petition, Mr. Srinivas told the tribunal the I-T sleuths had conducted a hunt and seizure cognition astatine the premises belonging to Mr. Vijay connected September 30, 2015 and seized incriminating materials.
The materials indicated that P.T. Selvakumar and Shibu of SKT Studios, producers of the actor’s 2015 movie Puli, had paid him ₹4.93 crore successful currency isolated from the remuneration of ₹16 crore done cheques. They had deposited the Tax Deducted astatine Source (TDS) lone for the cheque magnitude and not the currency transaction.
When the histrion was confronted with the records, helium reportedly admitted to person received ₹5 crore successful currency and agreed to wage the taxes for it. When asked however overmuch of unaccounted income had the histrion earned successful the past six years, helium replied helium hadn’t received immoderate unaccounted currency but for the ₹5 crore for Puli.
Nevertheless, successful bid to cooperate with the I-T section and to resoluteness the taxation issues successful an amicable manner, the histrion agreed to disclose an further income of ₹15 crore (including the currency transaction of ₹5 crore) for the fiscal twelvemonth 2015-16 and wage the indispensable taxes for it.
Subsequently, connected July 29, 2016, helium filed his instrumentality of income for the appraisal twelvemonth 2016-17 declaring his full income to beryllium ₹35.42 crore including the further ₹15 crore. While filing the returns, helium claimed depreciation of assets worthy ₹17.81 lakh and sought exemption for his fans’ nine expenses of ₹64.71 lakh.
However, the section disallowed his claims and passed an appraisal bid connected December 30, 2017 determining the taxable income to beryllium ₹38.25 crore. The appraisal bid besides stated the histrion would not person disclosed the further income but for the hunt and seizure operation.
Therefore, the section imposed punishment nether Sections Sections 271(1)(c) and 271AAB(1) of the I-T Act. Though, helium chose to spell connected statutory entreaty against the appraisal bid arsenic good arsenic the punishment imposed nether Section 271(1)(c), the punishment nether Section 271AAB(1) unsocial had been challenged by mode of a writ petition.
While admitting the writ petition connected August 16, 2022, Justice Anita Sumanth had restrained the I-T section from recovering the punishment magnitude for a constricted period. Thereafter, the interim bid was extended periodically until Justice Abdul Quddhose connected February 21, 2023 said, the interim bid shall proceed till further orders.
The writ petition was listed for proceeding past successful December 2023 and reappeared successful the origin database again connected Tuesday since Justice Saravanan had begun last proceeding connected the income taxation cases pending for long.
