Penalty imposed on Vijay not legal; setback to Income Tax department in case against actor

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has stayed the Income Tax Department's action to impose fine on Tamil actor Vijay. The Income Tax Department imposed a fine of Rs 1.5 crore on the actor. The fine was imposed on the actor on the grounds that Vijay did not disclose the excess income received in the financial year 2015-16 before the Income Tax Department.

The Income Tax department found that Vijay received Rs 16 crore as cheque and Rs 4.93 crore in cash for 'Puli' movie. Investigators had found that including this amount, Vijay had an additional income of Rs 15 crore on that financial year. But the actor's lawyer argued that under the Income Tax Act, the penalty amount for this period should have been levied before June 30, 2018, and the penalty after the deadline was not legal. Considering this argument, the court granted an interim stay.