IT department moves High Court against AR Rahman; Details inside

In October last year, the Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, Chennai, said that AR Rahman had diverted money to the tune of Rs 3 Cr to the AR Rahman Foundation with the aim of “evading” income tax. Consequently, the matter was referred to an appellate tribunal, which set aside the Commissioner’s allegation.

The news is that, on Friday, the IT department has moved the Madras High Court in the matter against the tribunal’s order. The HC has sent a notice to the legendary music director, who will now have to come up with an explanation regarding the allegation of routing income to his Foundation.

It was in 2015 that Rahman received something like Rs 3.47 Cr for composing a ringtone for a mobile company based in the UK. The remuneration was allegedly transferred to the AR Rahman Foundation. Since the Foundation didn’t possess an FCRA license at that time, transferring the amount received from a foreign source was not proper as per the rulebook. It was only in February this year that the Foundation received an FCRA incense.

Rahman’s foundation has been sponsoring the educational and creative pursuits of underprivileged kids. It’s a not-for-profit organization.