LHC suspends notice for audit of Tareen’s sugar mills

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday suspended the operation of a notice by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for an audit of JDW Sugar Mills, owned by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Jahangir Tareen.

Justice Raheel Kamran passed the orders on a petition filed by the JDW Sugar Mills challenging FBR’s notice to audit the 2015 period, and also issued a notice to the FBR chairman and others seeking a reply.

The petitioner’s counsel argued before the court that the mill was a big taxpayer and it regularly paid taxes. He said the FBR’s audit commissioner had on May 21 issued a notice to the mills for an audit of the 2015 period and sought various documents and records.

He said as per the law, the FBR was not empowered to audit any business institution after the passage of a five year period. He said the respondent was empowered to hold an audit of the mills for the 2015 period till September 30, 2020, but the period had now expired.

He argued that the notice was not just illegal but also mala fide. He contended that the notice was in violation of sections 122 and 174 of the tax ordinance. He pleaded with the court to set aside the notice for being illegal and suspend its operation until the final decision of the petition.

The court, after recording initial arguments, suspended the operation of the notice till further orders. The court also issued notices and sought replies from the FBR chairman and other respondents.