KARACHI: Collector of Customs Adjudication Chaudry Mohammad Javaid has penalized M/s Pure Enterprises and clearing agents for clearance of restricted pharmaceutical raw material by mis-declaration of description, classification besides evasion of duty/taxes and violation of Import Policy.
Collector Adjudication that a sum of evaded duty/taxes of Rs33.99 million is recoverable from M/s Pure Enterprises while a penalty of Rs5.0 million is also imposed on the importer. Clearing agents M/s Rajab Ali & sons and M/s Suhail Enterprises are imposed a penalty of Rs500,000 each.
Moreover, two consignments of pharmaceutical raw material ‘paracetamol’ are ordered to be confiscated without any redemption option.
According to the details of the case, Model Customs Collectorate of Appraisement (East), Customs House, Karachi received information that M/s. Pure Enterprises was regularly importing pharmaceutical raw material with the vague description of SDO and preservative from China at the lowest declared value $0.30/Kg while according to the informer, the impugned pharmaceutical raw material was in-fact “Paracetamol” which being costly item, the declared / assessed value should not have been less than $5-6/KG.
Further, the import of these goods is allowed to be imported only by industrial unit holding valid pharmaceutical manufacturing license.
A strict vigil was kept by the Model Customs Collecorate of Appraisement (East), Karachi, on the manifested cargo and finally two consignments were spotted.
In order to ensure that the goods are not removed through illegal means, the said containers were blocked in the system and Deputy Collector (PICT) was requested to with held the auction proceedings. Since nobody filed the GD, therefore, the Deputy Collector (PICT) referred the goods for chemical analysis from Custom House Lab. Lab analyzed the samples and found the goods to be Paracetamol.
Collector Adjudication Chaudry Mohammad Javaid after detailed deliberations found the charges established and penalized the importer as well as the clearing agents.
The prime accused of this sheer violations of Rules and Laws Mohammad Ali Chandna is already booked by the authorities and is currently on bail. According to the reported details of the case, the culprits were importing raw material banned under Import Policy order 2013 on highly under-invoiced values mis-declaring the same as chemicals under vague descriptions and inappropriate classifications.
Raw material so fraudulently imported was being supplied to several local as well as multi-national pharmaceutical companies. The Chandna gang was running this dirty business for a long-time and authorities estimate that enormous quantity of banned products were imported and supplied to consumers while the exchequer suffered a loss to the tune of a billion rupees.