The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday declared the amnesty scheme introduced by the previous government for smuggled vehicles as illegal and ordered the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to confiscate 50,000 such vehicles. The court also ordered the FBR to announce the auction of vehicles that were imported without paying normal government taxes.
A single member bench of the IHC comprising Justice Shoukat Aziz Siddiqui resumed hearing of a plea, filed by Khawaja Saad Salim, seeking nullification of government’s amnesty scheme legalising vehicles that were smuggled into the country after paying nominal taxes.
During the course of hearing, Syed Jabed Akbar, counsel for the petitioner apprised the bench that the FBR had begun the amnesty scheme for registration of smuggled vehicles through SRO 172(1)/2013 on March 5, 2013, to avoid the normal taxes and duties on import of automobiles. The scheme caused losses to the tune of billions of rupees to the national exchequer at the cost of all taxpayers and citizens of the country, he said.
Akbar argued continuation of the amnesty scheme introduced may result in creation of a black market for vehicles in the country on a permanent basis.
This black market would act as a parallel market of automobiles in the country and will greatly damage the lawfully existing market, he added. The SRO is mala fide and has the illegitimate aim of smuggling motor vehicles, which cannot be brought to the country through normal channels, or if brought through the said normal channels, would not yield the profit earned through concessions allowed by the said SRO, the counsel stated. Akbar contended such schemes’ are intended to be misused and a number of officers of the respondents have hatched a concerted scheme with those who were involved in business of smuggling the vehicles, adding that the responsible authorities had miserably failed to prevent such schemes.
The amnesty scheme is a glaring example of one of the corrupt and illegal acts done by the former FBR chairman Ali Arshad Hakeem, to benefit his political masters, during the last days of the government’s tenure, he alleged.
He said introduction of the scheme was a classic case of a public authority acting “absurdly, irrationally and without application of its mind” thereby making the outcome grossly unreasonable and therefore, illegal. The Competition Commission of Pakistan in its Policy Note on March 14, 2013 had recommended to the respondents that the amnesty scheme be withdrawn, he said. He prayed the court to declare the SRO, introducing the amnesty scheme for smuggled vehicles illegal and based on mal intentions. “The respondents should be directed to immediately seize all vehicles which were legalised by payment of a confessional duty under the amnesty scheme and treat them according to applicable law and procedure,” Akbar prayed to the court.
A representative of FBR and Deputy Attorney General Tariq Jehangiri apprised the bench that the government had launched the scheme to legalise the illegal vehicles in Balochistan and to raise additional revenue.
He said the government had the power to launch any scheme.
IHC declares amnesty for smuggled vehicles illegal
