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(4) In the case of All India Reporter v. Ramchandra D. Datar , the Hon'ble Supreme Court held as follows ;
"We are not concerned to decide in this appeal whether in the hands of the respondent the amount due to him under the decree, when paid, will be liable to tax; that question does not fall to be determined in this appeal. The question to be determined is whether as between the appellant-company and the respondent, the amount decreed is due as salary payment which attracts the statutory liability imposed by Section 18. The claim decreed by the civil Court was for compensation for wrongful termination of employment, arrears of salary, salary due for the period of notice and interest and costs, loss withdrawals on salary account. The amount for which execution was sought to be levied was the amount decreed against which was set off the claim under the cross decree. A substantial part of the claim decreed represented compensation for wrongful termination of employment and it would be difficult to predicate of the claim sought to be enforced what part thereof, if any represented salary due. Granting that compensation payable to an employee, by an employer for wrongful termination of employment be regarded as in the nature of salary, when the claim is merged in the decree of the Court, the claim assumes the character of a judgment debt, and to judgment debts Section 18 has not been made applicable. The decree passed by the civil Court must be executed subject to the deductions and adjustment permissible under the CPC. The judgment debtor may, if he has a cross decree for money, claim to set off the amount due there under. If there be any adjustment of the decree, the decree may be executed for the amount due as a result of the adjustment. A third person who has obtained a decree against the judgment creditor may apply for attachment of the decree and such decree may be executed subject to the claim of the third person; but the judgment debtor cannot claim to satisfy, in the absence of a direction in the decree to that effect the claim of a third person against the judgment creditor and pay only the balance. The rule that the decree must be executed according to its tenor may be modified by a statutory provision. But there is nothing in the IT Act which supports the plea that in respect of the amount payable under a judgment debt of the nature sought to be enforced, the debtor is entitled to deduct income-tax which may become due and payable by the judgment creditor on the plea that the cause of action on which the decree was passed was the contract of employment and a part of the claim decreed represented amount due to the employee as salary or damages in lieu of salary."