Dividends
Dividends.
26 194. 27 The principal officer of an Indian company or a company which has made the prescribed arrangements for the declaration and payment of dividends (including dividends on preference shares) within India, shall, before making any payment in cash or before issuing any cheque or warrant in respect of any dividend or before making any distribution or payment to a shareholder, 28 [who is resident in India,] of any dividend within the meaning of sub-clause (a) or sub-clause (b) or sub-clause (c) or sub-clause (d) or sub-clause (e) of clause (22) of section 2, deduct from the amount of such dividend, income-tax 29[***] at the rates in force :
30 [Provided that no such deduction shall be made in the case of a shareholder, being an individual, 31[***] of a company in which the public are substantially interested, if—
( a) the dividend is paid by such company by an account payee cheque; and
( b) the amount of such dividend or, as the case may be, the aggregate of the amounts of such dividend distributed or paid or likely to be distributed or paid during the financial year by the company to the shareholder, does not exceed 32 [two thousand five hundred rupees]:
33 [Provided further that no such deduction shall be made in respect of any dividends referred to in section 115-O.]