ISLAMABAD:The Customs Appellate Tribunal, Islamabad, has delivered its verdicts on 85 petitions related to Gilgit-Baltistan within two weeks, demonstrating lightning speed.
A two-member bench comprising Chairman Hafiz Ansar-ul-Haq and Member Technical Abdul Waheed Marwat completed the hearing on these appeals related to customs.
In its decision, the tribunal directed the customs authorities to re-inspect the relevant goods in the presence of the applicant’s representative and ensure fair assessment.
According to the decision, the goods can be released after payment of duty and tax, however, the goods violating the existing import policy will remain confiscated. The decision further said that all fines and penalties imposed on the appellants are cancelled. The appellants were accused of misrepresentation and evasion of duty and tax in imported goods, the value of which was stated to be more than Rs 19.2 million.
On this basis, the Customs Collector had ordered to confiscate the goods and impose a fine of 20 percent, which the appellants had challenged in the tribunal.
The tribunal ruled that since the goods are still at the sluggish dry port of Gilgit-Baltistan and duty and tax evasion have not been proven, they should be re-inspected at the request of the petitioners.
According to the decision, all consignments are under 100 percent customs inspection. The total value of these petitions under hearing in the Customs Appellate Tribunal was more than Rs 13 billion, while the tribunal has pronounced decisions on petitions worth more than Rs 109 billion in the last 14 months. –Agencies
