SC dismisses PIL against taxing of interest on accident compensation

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a petition seeking quashing of the provision mandating tax on interest earned on compensation received by a road accident victim.

A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and A S Bopanna dismissed the plea filed by an advocate saying he was not "personally aggrieved" in the matter.

The petitioner is not personally aggrieved by the award under Motor Accident Claims Tribunal. The challenge of this nature has to be brought forward by the person aggrieved. We see no reason to entertain the petition which has been styled as PIL, the bench said.

The apex court, however, made it clear it was not expressing any opinion on the issue of legal point raised in the petition.

The top court was hearing a PIL filed by advocate Amit Sahni seeking that Central Board of Direct Taxes' (CBDT) June 26, 2019 order be set aside. It had held that the income tax levied upon the interest accrued upon compensation granted by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) is fair and reasonable.

The CBDT had passed the order while dismissing his representation on the issue and had held that such interest falls in the category of income.