KARACHI: Muhammad Saleem, proprietor of M/s Eastern Construction Co approached the Sindh High Court (SHC) and filed a petition against penalty/ recovery notice on imported used Nissan Dumper truck under the garb of SRO No 567(1)/2006.
On 26 June 2020, counsel for the petitioner submitted his petition that petitioner is proprietor of a construction company accredited by Pakistan Engineering Counsel and allowed to import old and used specialized construction machinery and in such regards imported one used Nissan Dumper truck and declared the same and filed before the customs officials for reduced rate of duty at 5% but subject to condition that the truck will not be disposed of within the next 10 years, otherwise than as provided, in terms of the notification bearing SRO No 567(1)/2006.
Counsel further submitted that is was in the backdrop of such position that on June 5, 2020 the petitioner was surprised to receive recovery notice dated May 19, 2020, issued by the customs officials, whereby a penalty of Rs20,828,410 has been adjudged as penalty against the petitioner by the concerned customs official under clause 10A of section 156(1) of the customs act, 1969 equivalent to ten times the amount of duty and taxes availed as partial exemption in respect of customs’ clearance of the said truck.
Citing secretary Revenue Division, collector of Customs Appraisement & Faccilitration East, Director General of Intelligence and Investigation and others as respondents, petitioner pleaded the court to declare that act of the respondents is illegal, mala fide and arbitrary.
He further pleaded the court to declare that the impugned recovery notice found upon the impugned order-in-original, is equally illegal, without jurisdiction and manifestly mala fide and to set-aside/ strike down the same and restrain them from taking any coercive action/ adverse action against the petitioner in relation the impugned order-in-orginal and/ or the recovery notice.
