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KARACHI, Jan 16: A division bench of the Sindh High Court on Wednesday admitted a sales tax appeal of Siemens Pakistan and stayed recovery of sales tax and additional tax on installation services and advances received by the appellant.
The bench comprised Justice Zahid Kurban Alavi and Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany.
Aziz A. Shaikh, counsel for the appellant, argued that provision of section 3 of the STA did not cover levy of sales tax on services, read with Sindh Sales Tax Ordinance-2000.
The government cannot enlarge the scope of tax, therefore, Order in the appeal passed by the tribunal suffered from serious infirmity of law, jurisdiction and authority, he contended.
His argument was that the advances received did not constitute supply nor sales but bailment. Hence it cannot be subjected to tax.
The bench also restrained the collector, sales tax, from recovery action.
The same bench remanded back to the tribunal the appeal filed by Collector of Sales Tax to recover duty and taxes from Kohinoor Industries, District Kasur, on the plea that the machinery was installed within 30km from Lahore Municipality limits.
The bench also issued directives to resolve the factual controversy.
Counsel for the Kohinoor Industries, Aziz A. Shaikh, argued that whether the factory was situated within 30km or not was the question of fact and cannot be agitated before the court.
On the point of limitation, several appeals on similar grounds were allowed by the superior court, he argued. He contended that benefits of SRO 484 (1)/92 were not attracted.
It was his contention that the CBR letter, relied upon to upset expressed provision of SRO 484(1)/92, having force of law, was improper and illegal unless amended in a like manner in pursuance of section 21 of the General Clauses Act.
APPEAL ADMITTED: The National Accountability Bureau has been put on notice by a division bench of Sindh High Court in an appeal filed by former Chairman of the Bankers’ Equity Limited (BEL), Rauf B. Qadri, who has challenged his conviction by an Accountability Court.
The bench, comprising Justice Ghulam Nabi Soomro and Justice Ghulam Rabbani, also admitted his appeal for regular hearing and adjourned it till next date (date in office).
On Dec 4, 2001, Judge Dr Qamaruddin Bohra of AC-I, Karachi, had awarded seven years’ rigorous imprisonment (RI) to Rauf B. Qadri and imposed a fine of Rs1 million on charges of bank fraud of Rs2 million.
The court had also disqualified him for ten years from holding any public office.
