Legal notice issued to Customs over withheld goods

PESHAWAR: A legal notice was issued to the Customs officials and other authorities for stopping imported crude oil and other materials of a private petroleum company at NLC Dry Port Quetta despite clear orders by the Peshawar High Court.

The notice asked the chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and other officials to ensure compliance with the court orders.The notice, sent through Advocate Ishaq Ali Qazi to the collector of Customs Quetta and the deputy collector of NLC Dry Port, said that the petitioner, SABCO Petroleum Services, had been importing crude oil and other materials from Iran for a long time. The company’s sales tax returns for September, October, November, and December 2024 were cleared, and its license was renewed twice, which was now valid until December 31, 2025.

Despite fulfilling all necessary tax and duty obligations, SABCO Petroleum’s shipments were held at the dry port. Officials issued letters on December 16 and 19, 2024, raising various concerns regarding the imported goods. Subsequently, on January 8, 2025, the Directorate General of the Department of Explosives, under the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum Division, revoked the company’s Form-L license without justification.

The legal notice said that the license cancellation had been challenged in the Peshawar High Court, seeking directives for customs authorities to release the shipments. The court had ordered customs officials to release the goods by February 20, 2025. However, despite the court directives, the shipments remained withheld, which amounted to contempt of court, the notice added.

The notice called for immediate implementation of the court order and the release of the goods. It urged the chairman FBR and the Federal Tax Ombudsman to take action to ensure compliance with the legal directives.