Sushmita Sen's #MeToo Payout, Not Taxable
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal has ordered in favour of the actress and declared her #MeToo payout, as non-taxable
In the financial year 2003-04, Sushmita Sen had received
Rs 95 lakh as settlement compensation from Coca-Cola India. This compensation
was in lieu of a sexual harassment complaint filed by her against an
ex-employee of the company.
The recent update in this case, as per TOI, is that the
city bench of Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) ruled in favour of Sushmita
Sen. They held the amount of Rs 95 lakh as non-taxable. In its order dated
November 14, the ITAT stated that this ‘income’ could not be taxed, as it was
in the nature of a ‘capital receipt’. Further, the penalty amount of Rs 35 lakh
that had been imposed on her for concealment of income was ordered to be set
aside.
The actress had got into a commercial contract with
Coca-Cola India aggregating to Rs 1.5 crore to endorse its products. But, this
contract was prematurely terminated by the company. She had disputed this
termination calling it as mala fide and dishonest. She claimed that the
commercial contract termination was a means of punishing her because she had
resisted sexual harassment by the company’s employee.
She held Coca-Cola India, and its US-based parent,
responsible for all the consequences flowing from such kind of sexual
harassment and also for failing to discharge its statutory duty of providing
her with a safer work environment. Thereafter, the company and Sushmita had
reached a settlement.
According to terms of the commercial contract, in case of
a termination, only an amount of Rs 50 lakh was due to her from Coca-Cola
India. Under the terms of the settlement, she earned Rs 1.45 crore, out of
which she offered Rs 50 lakh to income-tax. The remaining Rs 95 lakh, she
claimed was in the nature of compensation, which wasn’t taxable.
On the personal front, Sushmita is in a happy space, as
she is dating Rohman Shawl. Today, she celebrates her 43rd birthday and we
wish her a good one.
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