MULTAN: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has struck down the appointment of the Chairman of the Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue (ATIR), ruling that the Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue Rules, 2020 were never approved by the federal government and, therefore, lack legal standing.
The petitioner had challenged the appointment on the grounds that it was made arbitrarily and in violation of procedural norms, particularly bypassing seniority. The court observed that since the 2020 Rules were not officially sanctioned, all appointments made under them were without lawful authority.
However, while declaring the appointments illegal, the court invoked the de facto doctrine, allowing the current Chairman and Members appointed under the impugned Rules to continue in office until the federal government frames fresh appointment rules in line with the law, as per the Mustafa Impex case.
The court also expressed concern over the delay by the Ministry of Law and Justice, questioning why the matter had not been addressed despite earlier judicial observations. The court was informed that new rules have now been promulgated to regulate appointments within the tribunal.
On the question of maintainability, the court noted that the petition fell under the category of a writ of quo warranto, meaning the proceedings were inquisitorial rather than adversarial. Citing the Supreme Court’s judgment in Dr. Akhtar Hassan Khan vs Federation of Pakistan, the court reiterated the importance of judicial review of executive actions.
The petition was subsequently allowed, with the court setting aside the appointment of the ATIR Chairman and directing those future appointments be made strictly under the new regulatory framework.
