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ISLAMABAD: In line with an apparant government’s commitment with the IMF, the Islamabad High Court has cleared stay orders in 270 cases in a couple of months, enabling tax authorities to recover over Rs600bn.
According to the details obtained from the IHC, three division benches decided these tax-related matters. A few of the restraining orders issued in these cases incapacitated Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to collect taxes for over two decades.
The division bench of Justice Mohammad Azam Khan and Justice Raja Inaam Ameen Minhas decided an overwhelming majority of 173 of tax cases involving Rs424bn. Another bench comprising Justice Babar Sattar and Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan cleared 94 cases in which over Rs150bn recoveries were stalled.
A bench comprising acting IHC Chief Justice Sardar Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar and Justice Raja Inaam Ameen Minhas lifted the stay orders and decided three petitions that had in 2023 restrained the FBR to collect Rs36bn.
Judicial policy body had advised high courts to constitute special benches for disposal of tax-related cases
A two-member division bench comprising Justice Mohammad Azam Khan and Justice Raja Inaam Ameen Minhas decided 125 cases related to Income Tax References, Sales Tax References and Foreign Exchange Regulations Act.
The government’s recoverable Rs290.51bn were stuck in 125 cases related to ITR. 36 STR cases involves recovery of Rs131.55bn while Rs3.16bn were recoverable in 12 cases related to FERA.
In February, CJP Yahya Afridi met with PM Shehbaz Sharif to discuss the agenda of the upcoming meeting of the National Judicial Policy Making Committee. During the meeting, the premier requested the chief justice for expeditious disposal of tax-related cases.
The IMF Governance and Diagnostic Assessment teams visited Pakistan to examine the governance structure of several ministries related to fiscal policy, tax policy, corruption, procurement, audits, and anti-money laundering.
The NJPMC also advised for swift disposal of the tax-related matters, in its meeting held in April, asking the high courts to constitute special benches for expeditious disposal of tax-related cases. These 270 tax-related cases were pending in the IHC for several years. Following NJPMC’s advice and directions issued by the apex court in the tax matters, the IHC Judicial Registrar put up a note before the acting CJ for consolidation of all the matters, according to documents seen by Dawn.
Published in Dawn, June 7th, 2025
