KARACHI: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has directed M/s Fatima Fertilizers Company Limited to deposit Rs 1.9 million taxes and duties which were short paid by taking illegal benefits of SRO575(I)/2006, it is learnt.
Collector Customs Adjudication-II, wing of FBR, Chaudhary Muhammad Javaid has issued an Order-in-Original against M/s Fatima Fertilizer Company Limited Lahore for taking illegal benefits under SRO575(I)/2006, causing serious financial loss to the national exchequer.
According to insiders, the Directorate of Post Clearance Audit of Customs had detected four case involving major tax evasion of worth Rs 31.204 million by M/s Fatima Fertilizer Company Limited and forwarded all these cases to adjudication for further action.
The sources disclosed that the scrutiny of import data revealed that M/s Fatima Fertilizer Company Limited imported consignments of stainless steel piping, cables, scaffolding, ladder, tube etc through Customs Appraisement (East), Custom House.
And the importer had illegally availed the benefit of inadmissible exemption of customs duty as in excess of 5 percent under Sr No 20 & 21 of SRO 575(I)/2006 dated 05.06.2006.
Therefore, an amount of Rs 31.204 million has been short paid/evaded by the importers on account of custom duty, withholding tax and sales tax.
After hearing both the sides, the Collector Customs Adjudication-II Chaudhary Muhammad Javaid has passed his order against the importer M/s Fatima Fertilizer Company Ltd Lahore for violating the provisions of Section 32(1)(2) and (3A) of the Customs Act, 1969, punishable under clauses (1), (14) of section 156(1) of the Customs Act, 1969 read with section 33 of the Sales Tax Act 1990, chapter X of the Sales Tax Special procedure Rules 2007 (special procedures for payment of sales tax by the importers ) and section 148 of Income Tax Ordinance 2001.