KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) has directed the customs authorities to release the petitioners’ consignments of iron and steel products after receiving duty and taxes by them.
M/s Wasif Steel Industries, M/s Owais Oman Enterprises, M/s Sonia International, M/s Crystal Steel Corporation and Ms Junaid Brothers are among the petitioners who had challenged the imposition of regulatory duty on imports of iron and steel from China.
Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, who headed the division bench, granted the petitioners’ request for release of their consignments while directing them to deposit the disputed regulatory duty with Nazir of the court. The court asked the customs authorities to release the consignments after the petitioner importers pay duty and taxes.
Naming the finance secretary, Federal Board of Revenue’s chairman, chief collector custom as respondents the petitioners stated that Pakistan and China had entered into a Free Trade Agreement for import of steel and iron products and subsequently a notification was issued exempting regulatory duty on imports.
However, they said, the federal government had issued SRO No. 601(1)2015 on June 30 whereby it amended its earlier SRO No. 568(1)2014 abolishing the exemption. The counsel for the petitioners argued that the material they import from China comes within scope of FTA and therefore, the imposition of regulatory duty was illegal and unlawful.
They prayed to the court to declare as illegal the notification regarding imposition of regulatory duty and direct the respondents to withdraw the same.
The petitioners submitted that their consignments have arrived at the port awaiting clearance but due to impugned imposition of regulatory duty they could not be cleared. Therefore, they requested the court to order the release of their consignments to save containers rent and demurrage charges and avoid loss to the petitioners.
The hearing of case was put off till August 20.
