KARACHI: A two-member bench of the Sindh High Court (SHC) dismissed the constitutional petitions as not press along with pending applications filed by M/s Ghandhara Industries Private Limited challenged imposition of additional customs duty through SRO 845(I)/2021 & 904(I)/2021.
On 19 November 2021, a two-member bench, comprising Justice Shafi Muhammad Siddiqui and Justice Agha Faisal heard the matter.
During the hearing, Hyder Ali Khan advocate for petitioner appeared before the court and informs that his counsel wants not to press these petitions. After the hearing, court observed that “learned counsel, on instructions, does not press these petitions, dismissed as not pressed along with pending applications”.
Earlier, counsel had argued that petitioner in lawful engaged in the manufacturing, assembling, marketing, distribution and sale of motor vehicles and never had been involved in any crime and tax evasion ever, however, petitioner is serious aggrieved and seeks to challenge the imposition of additional customs duty through SRO 845(I)/2021 and SRO 904(I)/2021 on the petitioner’s imports under PCT Heading 87.01, 87.02 and 87.4 and the vires of section 18 of the customs.
Citing Chairman Federal Board of Revenue, Collector of Customs Appraisement West, Collector of Customs Appraisement East, Collector of Customs Port Muhammad Bin Qasim, Collector of Customs Air Fright Unit as respondents, petitioner pleaded the court to declare that act of the respondents is illegal, mala fide and arbitrary.
Counsel further pleaded the court may set aside impugned valuation rulings, direct them to release petitioner’s consignments and restrain them from taking any adverse action against the petitioner till final order in these constitutional petitions.