Was Bigg Boss Ultimate winner Bala short changed by Disney+ Hotstar ?

'Bala ( Balaji Murugadoss) was declared winner of the Bigg Boss Ultimate reality show and viewers were suprised that he was given a replica of a cheque with amount Rs35 lakhs. The advertised prize money was Rs 50 lakhs to the winner. Why was Rs 15 lakhs deducted ?. Bala and other contestants who signed the contract with Disney Hotstar was informed that the prize money was Rs 50 lakhs and it was subject to prevailing Income Tax rules. ncome tax rule says As per section 194B of the income tax act, all the winnings over and above Rs 10,000 will be subject to a TDS of 30%. With cess and surcharge, the effectual rate will be 31.2%. This TDS is supposed to be deducted by the company or organisation distributing the prize money. Hence Bala was given Rs 35 lakhs. In case of Shruti, another contestant who walked with the brief case of Rs 15 lakhs as she accepted the option to quit, would be getting a lesser amount around Rs 10 lakhs. Those in the know say that prize money's tax component is paid on behalf of the contestant by the company that conducts the show.The practice has been so far that the contestant got the full prize money and as per GST rules prize money does not come ume under the term ` supply'. The contestants signed without reading the fine print and did not ask for the channel to pick up the TDS bill. In earlier seasons too, contestnts who are paid weekly fee as participataion money found GST deducted and some payments were with held as in case of Kasthuri. Even at the finale, Sruthi said that she had yet to get the money. In case where ready to occupy flats are given , the builder advertises the full amount of the completed flat as prize money. The winner has to pick the registration GST charges and TDS deducted amount is considered for the prize value. If the winner can pay the difference amount after the TDS deducted amount and the GST for registration, he/ she gets the advertised flat or ends up with a downgraded model of the flat.