KARACHI: A divisional bench of High Court of Sindh (SHC) while holding contempt of court proceedings in a case of import of cellular phones, directed Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to check, match EMI numbers and make a report about a consignment of cellular phones.
Earlier Pakistan Customs Appraisement questioned the genuineness of a consignment of Q Mobiles imported by one Rahim Mirani for a company based at Lahore.
The bench at the outset of hearing today asked that whether the Emi numbers have matched at which Kashif Nazeer Advocate counsel for Pakistan Customs Appraisement east expressed doubts.
Ismat Mehdi advocate counsel for petitioner said that Custom officials so far have conducted five examination and one such examination was conducted by the Deputy Collector himself.
She submitted a number of Gross Declarations filed by competitors and said that Custom officials cleared their consignments without opening the contained while petitioner was being discriminated. They have made it a issue of ego and are not ready to release the consignment. After order by SHC the contained was returned by the Preventive Collectorate and now since 112 days it is lying with the Appraisement, she submitted alleging that genuine importers are being harassed by the Custom Officers.
The bench after attempts to establish that cell phone with EMI numbers matching are available in the consignment by sifting through the documents and report generated on computer asked the petitioner to obtain a certificate from PTA.
We have applied for the report but PTA is delaying the report as Director PTA is batch mate of respondent Collector, she submitted.
The bench said that it can direct the PTA to submit a report. Kashif Nazeer, counsel for Customs said that issue can be referred for adjudication. The bench expressed annoyance and said that it was beyond the jurisdiction of Appraisement at this stage.
The bench later adjourned hearing while seeking a report from PTA in respect of mobile phone sets available in the consignment and appearing in the certificate issued by the PTA.