LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has issued stay order in NHR Company case. The court has suspended the impugned notice of the Large Taxpayers Unit (LTU) until the next date of hearing. The NHR Company (Private) Limited had challenged the selection of petitioner’s case for the audit by the FBR.
Justice Shahid Karim heard the case filed by the company through advocate Sumair Saeed Ahmed. The counsel for the petitioner filed the case before the LHC under the article 199 of the constitution against the Federal of Pakistan, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Member IR, Commissioner IR zone-I, LTU, Additional and Deputy Commissioner.
The appellant filed the case on the grounds that the company is private limited engaged in the business of manufacturing of household electric appliance. The petitioner always filed the income tax returns under the section 114 of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001.
Besides all the payment of tax liabilities the respondent Commissioner Inland Revenue zone-I of Large Taxpayers Unit (LTU) has selected the case for audit. Adding more, the counsel argued that the said commissioner is not authorized to select case because the section 177 of the Income Tax Ordinance empowers the tax officers to call the record for audit.
The counsel also gave reference of the case of M/s Chen One Store Limited against the FBR and said that section 177 of the Income Tax Ordinance only empowers the FBR to conduct audit. The impugned selection of the case under section 177 is against the law.
He prayed that court to accept the instant writ petition and declare the impugned notice by the Commissioner LTU as illegal. He also prayed for the suspension of impugned audit selection notice to the petitioner. After hearing the arguments, the LHC has suspended the impugned notice to the NHR Company.
