KARACHI, Dec 2: A Supreme Court bench finally set aside a 12.5-million-rupee sales tax demand against a multinational healthcare industry on Thursday. The sales tax directorate moved a petition for leave to appeal against a Balochistan High Court order. The BHC dismissed an appeal by the directorate against a special tribunal adjudication against the tax demand. The appeal was hit by the law of limitation and no explanation or justification was made for exemption.

In its petition for leave to assail the BHC decision, the directorate submitted before the Supreme Court that its appeal in the BHC was late only by two days. It cited a judgment which condoned 142 days’ delay and said the appeal should have been heard in view of the amount of public revenue involved.

Appearing for the respondent company, Advocate Aziz A. Shaikh submitted that the case cited by the petitioner was distinguishable as it was decided ‘ex parte’. The appellant directorate gave no reasons for delay in filing its appeal before the high court. It was not the amount involved or the status of the parties that determined the application of the law of limitation.

An SC bench comprising Justices M. Javed Buttar and Saiyed Saeed Ashhad dismissed the petition and declined leave to the appellant directorate.