ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday reserved its verdict in a high-profile case involving alleged multi-billion rupee tax fraud by a company which manufactures batteries.

Justice Babar Sattar concluded hearings on the company’s petition challenging proceedings initiated by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) following a search operation at its offices.

During arguments, FBR’s counsel Chaudhry Ihtasham maintained that the case was not one of mere tax evasion but a matter of fraud. He informed the court that a challan had already been filed before the trial court in compliance with a Supreme Court order, but proceedings there had stalled due to an IHC stay order.

Justice Sattar noted that under a recent IHC notification, tax-related matters were to be heard by a division bench, and therefore, he could not continue the hearing. However, the petitioner’s counsel, Farogh Nasim, argued that the case being part-heard, the single bench was competent to proceed.

Earlier this year, Justice Sattar granted bail to a suspect in a related Rs40 billion tax evasion case linked to the same company against surety bonds of only Rs100.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2025