No undisputed tax payable, says Actor Mahesh Babu
Hyderabad, Dec 29: Top Telugu actor Mahesh Babu, whose two bank accounts were attached by the Goods and Services Tax department, has said there was no undisputed tax payable and he is a law abiding citizen complying with all fiscal legislations.
Besides, the actor's legal team said, a dispute on the matter was pending before court.
"The GST Commissionerate Hyderabad has attached the bank accounts for a disputed tax demand of Rs 18.5 lakh claiming Rs 73.5 lakh towards Tax interest and penalty for brand ambassador services rendered in FY 2007-08 which was not taxable service," the team said in a release Friday.
The brand ambassador service was brought in the statute only from July 2010, it said.
"Mahesh Babu is a law abiding citizen complying with all fiscal legislations and has no undisputed tax payable," the release said.
The GST Commissionerate, Hyderabad, has carried out the attachment without notice when several judicial pronouncements on the issue is in favour of the taxpayer and more so when the dispute is pending before the High Court, according to the team.
The GST department had said Thursday the accounts were attached to recover service tax dues from him.
According to a release issued by the Commissionerate, the actor has not paid the Service Tax during 2007-08 for the taxable services he rendered as brand ambassador, appearance money and advertising for promotion of products, among others.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
