The Secretary, Central Board Of Direct ... vs B. Shyam Sundar

The Supreme Court held that the reward scheme for officers of the Income Tax Department, as per Rule 2(b) and Rule 2(c) of the Reward Scheme, 1985, allows for ex-gratia payments based on individual contributions to assessments. The Court found that the respondent's claim for a reward was denied arbitrarily, as he had satisfied the conditions for a reward under Rule 2(b) despite not being part of the search team. The Court ruled in favor of the respondent, emphasizing that the discretion of the committee must be exercised reasonably and justly.