KARACHI: The Model Custom Collectorate Karachi detected evasion of duty/taxes amounting to Rs67.7million on import of ladies/gents polyester suiting. Shirting fabric and polyester dyed fabric were confiscated on account of misuse of SRO 659(I)/2007. Sources said the appraising officer processed the Goods Declarations (GDs) without taking cognizance of mis-declared PCT by the importer that the declared description and found description of the goods was polyester fabric attracting PCT 5407.5200 rather incorrect PCT applied by importer of nylon fabric 5407.4200 thereby availing otherwise inadmissible benefit of SRO 659(I)/2007 is by 4.0 percent. Sources further said the first GD processed became the part of past 90-day data and officers were then bound to accord the same treatment to other GDs. Appraising Officer (AO) Qaisar Nadeem Chatha processed 45 GDs, AOs Akram Basra and Mohammad Bilal processed 27 GDs each, Khurram Rafique did 18 GDs, Principal Appraiser (PA) Tariq Aziz processed 06 GDs, AO Abdul Hameed did five consignments. PA Abdur Rasheed Shaikah, AO Aziz Sarwar, AO Ehtesham-ul-Haq Paracha and AO Khalid Pervez processed 04 GDs each.
Moreover, AOs Hafiz Jokhio and Khalid Hasan Awan processed 03 GDs, AOs Imtiaz Hussain Khan, Sarfaraz Bangalzai, Syed Kamaluddin, Roshan Ali Khan and PA Ghulam Murtaza processed 02 GDs. AOs Amjad Iqbal, Imdad Ali Bozdar, Naeem Butt, Zulfikar Ali Shaikh, Mohammad Idrees, Rauf Khan, Shahid Murad, Noor Mohamad Kalwar and PAs Khalid Umar, Ahmed Nawaz and Sultan Aurungzeb one GD each on which inadmissible benefit of SRO 659(I)/2007 was availed.
Sources added that the appraising staff, including PAs and AOs, connived with the importers and clearing agents for their own benefit at the cost of the national exchequer.
