Actor Mahesh Babu’s accounts frozen by taxmen




-I. Ahmed

 

Hyderabad (Telangana): South Indian superstar and Tollywood Actor Mahesh Babu has received a jolt at the hands of officials of GST department from the city. The sleuths of the department have attached the bank accounts of the actor and recovered Rs.42 lakh from the actor’s bank accounts. The account has been attached for evading service tax by the actor for the financial year 2007-08. The officials have said that the actor still owed them Rs. 31 lakh towards the service tax. The officials said that the actor owed them a total sum of Rs.73.5 lakh. The officials revealed that they seized the bank accounts of the actor to recover their dues. They revealed that they recovered Rs.31 Lakh from the axis bank account of the actor and remaining amount from the ICICI bank account of the actor.  The officials have further stated that they issued notices to the actor in the year 2010 and added that an order was to pay the dues was passed against the actor in the year 2012. The actor preferred an appeal against the order in the central Excise and service tax tribunal. However, the tribunal upheld the order passed by the officials of the department.

Meanwhile, the legal team of the actor on Friday accused the GST Commissionerate that it did not serve any notice on the actor. It claimed that the penalty of Rs.73.5 lakh levied by the department on Rs 18.5 lakh dues owed by the actor was non-taxable. The legal team of the actor also claimed that the brand ambassador services, for which the penalty was imposed on the actor  were made taxable only from 2010.

“The GST Commissionerate Of Hyderabad has attached the bank accounts of the actor for the disputed tax demand of Rs 18.5 lakhs claiming Rs 73.5 lakhs towards Tax interest and penalty for brand ambassador services rendered by Mahesh Babu  in the financial year (FY) 2007-08 which was not taxable service,” the press statement released by the legal team claimed. It also stated that the brand ambassador services were brought in the statute by insertion of section 65(105)(zzzzq) with effect from 1-7-2010.  Mahesh is currently busy with his upcoming movie Maharshi. It is directed by Vamsi Paidipally.

 

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