9911796707
TMI Blog1998 (5) TMI 10X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... (v) to clause (2) of section 17 of the Act, which reads as under : "any sum paid by the employer in respect of any expenditure actually incurred by the employee on his medical treatment or treatment of any member of his family other than the treatment referred to in clauses (i) and (ii) ; so, however, that such sum does not exceed ten thousand rupees in the previous year." The underlined (italics) portion is challenged by the petitioners in these petitions. In Writ Petition No. 1411 of 1992, the facts were that one Subhash Banhatti, an officer of the State Bank of India was working as regional manager, Region-IV, at the zonal office of respondent No. 3. He left the zonal office at 10 a.m. on June 6, 1991, on an official visit to Navg ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 1997, wherein interim relief was granted restraining the Reserve Bank of India "from deducting any tax at source on the amount of reimbursement made by it to the petitioner therein (S. A. Bendre) in respect of the actual expenditure incurred for medical treatment taken by him." The petitioner in this case is a kidney patient suffering from chronic renal failure in respect of both kidneys and is required to undergo haemodialysis thrice a week. The annual cost of this treatment in respect of the petitioner is in the region of Rs. 1.5 lakhs and this expenditure is reimbursed to the petitioner, who is a senior officer of the Reserve Bank of India by his employer, Reserve Bank of India. As the petitioner was required to instal the dialysis mach ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... his court on April 6, 1992, in Writ Petition No. 1411 of 1992 was sought and Shri P. B. More's case was cited as an illustrative example. This court, however, restricted the interim relief only to the specific case cited. The facts in this case are that the petitioner's minor son (aged four and half years at that time) is a haemophiliac. Haemophilia is a disorder in which there is a tendency in the patient to bleed severely even from a slight injury. Shri More works as a typist in the Reserve Bank of India and his family is based in Pune. The only place where Shri More's son could get treatment in Pune was at a hospital known as "Lohade Hospital" where the "Haemophilia Care Centre" of the Haemophilia society of Maharashtra is situated. Howe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... victims of such arbitrary classification suffer for no fault on their part as indicated in the specific cases cited in the writ petitions. (f) A humanitarian welfare measure on the part of the employer is sought to be converted into a penal measure for the intended beneficiaries. (g) The employer faces penalty if it does not obey the law and the employee may be deprived of his entire salary for months together in order to meet the tax liability." It has been pointed out that nowadays to get proper medical facilities for a sum less than Rs. 10,000 is practically impossible, particularly in a city like Mumbai and other metropolitan cities. It is, therefore, submitted that the said provision is totally irrational as an employee is requi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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