SHC issues notices to Nepra, KE on plea against collection of sales and income taxes, additional surcharge through bills

The Sindh High Court on Thursday issued notices to the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra), K-Electric and others on a petition against the imposition of sales and income taxes, surcharge and additional surcharge through electricity bills.

Mohsin Ghayur submitted in the petition that the power utility was sending electricity bills to him in which, apart from electricity tariffs, surcharge, additional surcharge, sales tax, income tax, fuel adjustment charges were also included by the KE.

The petitioner’s counsel Sohail Hameed submitted that Nepra should ensure determination of power tariff for the household consumers after obtaining information with regard to the source of generation of power by the power utility companies.

He said the consumers of the Sindh province should be provided electricity at cheaper rates as Sindh was also one of the sources for power generation. He said power tariff should be rational and fair to the people of Sindh like electricity tariffs of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The counsel also questioned te imposition of advance tax, income tax and sales tax in the KE bills of and submitted that the KE had no authority to collect sales tax and income tax without approval under the Finance Act.

He further said that capacity charges of independent power producers (IPPs) could not be determined without ascertaining the power generation from hydel and other power generating sources. The court was requested to declare that capacity charges levied in the electricity bills without determination of capacity of the IPPs and other hydro and power generating sources as illegal. A division bench, headed by Justice Arshad Hussain Khan, issued notices to Nepra, KE and others, and called their comments on August 12.