KARACHI: The Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I has finally issued Order-in-Original (ONO) against M/s Pakistan Telecommunication Limited (PTCL), its contractor M/s Huawei Technologies and its clearing agents M/s Eastern Freighter in their alleged involvement in mis-declaration and concealment of import values and quantity of telecommunication equipment in Goods Declaration (GDs).
The fiscal fraud by M/s PTCL, its contractor M/s Huawei and its clearing agent M/s Eastern Freighter was detected by the Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation-FBR, Karachi.
In the contravention report made by the Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation FBR, stated that the M/s PTCL and its contractor were deliberately involved in evading leviable Customs Duty (CD) and other taxes in clearance of telecommunication equipment.
The M/s PTCL in compliance of clearing agent M/s Eastern Freighter Services and its local contractor M/s Huawei Technologies imported telecommunication equipment which have actual invoiced value of Rs1,009,417,370 and evaded leviable duty and taxes amounting to Rs441,650,943 in share of Customs Duty, Rs1,69,707,994 in share of Sales Tax; Rs10,094,174 in share of FED and Rs80,608,345 in share of Withholding Tax (WHT).
In the final judgment made by the Collector of the Customs (Adjudication-I) stated that “the petitioners shall deposit the aforesaid mentioned recoverable amount of duty and taxes along with penalty imposed on M/s Pakistan Telecommunication Limited (PTCL) and M/s Huawei Technologies.” It is pertinent to mention here that the two ONOs apart from this have already been issued against M/s PTCL and M/s Huawei Technologies in tax evasion case.
The first ONO against the said telecommunication company, its contractor and clearing agent was issued by the Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I in the month of April, 2014 when Shahanshah Hasnain was Collector of Customs Adjudication-I and the second ONO was issued by the Collector of Customs Adjudication-II Dr Mujtaba Memon against the telecommunication company PTCL, its contractor and its clearing agent.
