SHC declines Wahab’s request to vacate interim order against collection of tax through KE bills

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday appointed senior counsels Munir A Malik and Khalid Javed Khan as amici curiae to assist the court in a matter pertaining to the collection of municipal utility charges and taxes of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation through the K-Electric (KE) bills.

Petitioners Syed Najeebuddin Ahmed, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman and others had challenged the collection of fire and conservancy charges and other utility charges of the KMC through the power bills.

Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) Administrator Murtaza Wahab had submitted that the section 100 of the Sindh local government law dealt with powers of the KMC to collect taxes in the prescribed manner by the persons authorised for such collection.

He requested the high court to vacate the interim order of the court that restrained the power utility from collecting municipal utility charges and taxes on behalf of the KMC through its electricity bills from its consumers.

A counsel for the JI, Usman Farooq, submitted that fire and conservancy taxes were already being collected through the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) bills from citizens and there was no provision of additional municipal utility charges in the Schedule V of the Sindh Local Government Act 2013.

A division bench of the high court headed by Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi observed that it would be appropriate to appoint amicus curiae to assist the court to resolve such a controversy and appointed senior counsels Munir A Malik and Khalid Javed Khan to assist the court with regard to the powers of the KMC for the collection of municipal utility charges and taxes through the electricity bills.

The high court, however, turned down the request of the KMC administrator for vacating the interim stay order and observed that the interim order passed earlier would continue till the next date of hearing. The bench directed the parties to provide copies of pleadings along with annexures to the amici curiae at least four days before the hearing fixed for October 26.

The petitioners had questioned the viability of the collection of utility taxes through the KE bills and requested the high court to declare the impugned action of the KMC as unlawful. The SHC was requested to order that the mechanism for the recovery of municipal taxes be made effective and efficient rather than hiring services of the KE.

Talking to journalists after the hearing, the KMC administrator said the corporation would collect Rs.3.5 billion under the municipal charges and taxes if it was allowed to collect them through the KE. He added that the KMC was collecting the old municipality tax through a new method whose amount shall be utilised for the development of the city in a transparent manner.