ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court moved against increase in the General Sales Tax (GST) on products of petroleum until the ruling on the petition. Shahid Orakzai had filed the petition under Article 184(3) of the Constitution and made federation through secretary Ministry of Law and Justice and chairman Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) as respondents.
The petitioner also prayed the court to declare the increase in Sales Tax on petroleum products unauthorised under the law and direct the Ogra to re-evaluate the price of petroleum products by the standard GST.
Orakzai questioned whether a tax imposed by a federal law could be increased without amending the law? And whether, the rate/percentage of GST can be increased specifically for a particular group of products.
The federal government on January 31, 2015 increased the GST on all petroleum products by 10 per cent.
Resultantly, now it is 27 per cent of the cost of various carbon fuels.
Regardless of purpose or intent the increase or ‘alteration’ in GST is utterly unconstitutional and absolutely illegal.
