Thalapathy Vijay faces Rs 1.5 crore IT penalty as Madras HC dismisses plea against income tax fine

With the dismissal of the petition, the court confirmed that the penalty imposed on Vijay is legally valid.

• Madras High Court upholds Rs 1.5 crore tax penalty on actor Vijay
• Vijay's petition dismissed; penalty for undisclosed income in 2015–16 stands
• Court allows Vijay to approach Income Tax Appellate Tribunal for further appeal

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The Madras High Court has upheld the Rs 1.5 crore penalty imposed on actor-turned-politician Vijay by the Income Tax Department, delivering a major setback to him. On Friday, the High Court dismissed Vijay’s writ petition, in which he had challenged the tax authority’s order levying the fine.

With the dismissal of the petition, the court confirmed that the penalty imposed on Vijay is legally valid.

The bench observed that there had been no procedural lapses or irregularities at any stage of the proceedings and stated that the matter did not warrant any intervention by the court. As a result, the Income Tax Department’s stand was fully endorsed by the High Court.

The penalty pertains to the assessment year 2015–16, during which the tax department alleged that Vijay failed to properly disclose additional income amounting to Rs 15 crore. According to officials, this undisclosed income was detected during income tax searches conducted at the actor’s residence in September 2015.

Vijay had approached the court in 2022, seeking to have the penalty set aside. However, the verdict delivered this week went against him.

Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy, who had reserved his judgment last month, ruled that the show-cause notice issued by the Income Tax authorities was legally valid and had been issued within the prescribed time frame.

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The Income Tax Department argued that there was no delay in the proceedings, as the action was initiated within the statutory limitation period. After considering these submissions, the High Court dismissed Vijay’s petition and upheld the Rs 1.5 crore penalty. However, the court granted Vijay the liberty to approach the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal if he wishes to pursue the matter further.

Meanwhile, Vijay’s upcoming film Jana Nayagan, directed by H. Vinoth, continues to face uncertainty regarding its release. The project has reportedly been delayed due to pending censor certification and other related legal complications.