Tax deduction at source on leave fare concession payments was...

Tax deduction at source on leave fare concession payments was not required where binding interim judicial directions prohibited deduction or recovery. Vacation of those directions operated prospectively and could not retrospectively impose a recovery obligation on the employer. An employer acting in compliance with such orders could not be treated as an assessee in default under sections 201(1) and 201(1A). Liability under section 201 required verification of whether employees, as primary taxpayers, had discharged their tax liability; it was not automatic merely because tax had not been deducted. The demand and consequential interest were deleted.