SHC order declaring transfers, postings of 16 IR, 11 customs officers legal to be implemented: FBR

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) issued a circular — No. 20 (1) S-HRMIR One 2024/177654-R — on Friday to the heads of Inland Revenue field formations across the country.

The circular addresses Civil Suit No. 1049 of 2024, filed by Muhammad Nasir Janjua and others in the Sindh High Court, Karachi. The case involved 16 Inland Revenue Service officers and 11 Pakistan Customs Service officers who had challenged the posting and transfer notifications issued on July 3, 2024, through Notification No. 1654-C(1)/2024 and Notification No. 1653-IRON/2024. They requested the court to halt the implementation of these notifications temporarily.

The Sindh High Court has now lifted the interim ban on the transfers and postings of these officers and declared the notifications legal, requiring their implementation. The court also rejected the application filed by the Inland Revenue Service and Pakistan Customs Service officers challenging the July 3, 2024 notifications. The court stated that the issue raised by the officers could not be resolved in a civil court and dismissed the case under the restrictions outlined in Article 112 of the Constitution.

Initially, on July 29, 2024, the court had ordered the officers to remain in their previous postings. However, on August 8, 2024, the court reversed its decision and dismissed the application. As a result of this decision, the notifications regarding the transfer and posting of Inland Revenue Service and Pakistan Customs Service officers will now be implemented.

According to the FBR’s circular, the transfer and posting orders for senior officers of the Pakistan Customs Service, issued on July 3, 2024, through Notification No. 1654-C(1)/2024, will now be fully implemented. These officers, all in Basic Pay Scale (BPS) 20, include Dr Akhtar Hussain, Muhammad Adnan Akram, Ms. Iram Maqbool, Aamir Malik, Kamran Azam Khan, Khalid Hussain Jamali, Mr. Raza Sami-ul-Haq, Ms. Ambreen Ahmed Tarar, Aamir Rasheed Sheikh, Naveed Iqbal, and Muhammad Ahsan Khan.

Similarly, the July 3, 2024, transfer and posting orders for 16 BPS-20 officers of the Inland Revenue Service (covering Income Tax, Federal Excise Duty, and Sales Tax) will also be implemented following the Sindh High Court’s ruling. These officers include Qazi Afzal, Muhammad Nasir Janjua, Zahoor Ahmed Panwar, Dr. Tariq Ghani, Muhammad Abid, Ms. Humeira Maryam, Muhammad Naveed, Muhammad Ali, Naeem Babar, Zulfiqar Ali Shahin, Abdul Qadir Sheikh, Pir Khalid Ahmed Qureshi, Muhammad Asim Khattak, Dr. Razi Rehman Khan, Barrister Nowsherwan Khan, and Fazli Malik.

Copies of the notifications have been sent to the secretary Revenue Division, FBR Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial, all FBR members, directors general, commissioners, AGPR, and other officials concerned.