KARACHI: Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation has lodged three FIRs against M/s Balochistan Engineering Works Limited for evasion of legitimate government revenue through misuse of SRO 655(I)/2006 by availing undue exemptions of duties and taxes under the garb of EDB quota for manufacturing of finished goods through deliberate mis-declaration of the imported goods.
Information was passed through Director Irfan Javed that M/s Balochistan Engineering Works Limited and their associates are involved in tax/duty evasion under the garb of imports of steel sheets etc for manufacturing of automotive components and assemblies.
Investigations conducted by Superintendent SIU Dost Muhammad revealed that their manufacturing unit is non-functioning since years. Scrutiny of the documents/record found that M/s Balochistan Engineering Works Limited imported 05 consignments of “Cold Rolled Steel Sheets in Coils” from Vietnam/South Korea during May 2018 to July 2018 and got all those cleared for in-bonding from MCC-Port Muhammad Bin Qasim.
Subsequently, they got major quantity of the imported/in-bonded goods cleared for home consumption against their 15 Ex-bond GDs on payment of, inter alia, custom duty of 1% and regulatory duty 0% on the basis of EDB Quota Approval. Moreover, they paid income tax 0% / 5.50% ad val; under the garb of “industrial concern”.
Inquiry found Quota Approval Certificate specifically allows import of special grade “CRC Steel Sheets” but grade of their imported Sheets is nowhere mentioned in the documents which were got assessed for ordinary grade steel sheets, hence, not covered under the EDB Quota Approval.
Their declared as well as ascertained imported goods are “Cold Rolled Steel Sheets in Coils” which have been assessed by Customs under their declared PCT heading 7209.9090. However, quota for the same has been adjusted against “Cold Rolled Carbon Steel Tubes/Pipes-7306.9000” which sufficiently confirms non-availability of quota of “Specified Cold Rolled Steel Sheets in coils with M/s Balochistan Engineering Works Limited. The imported goods were of secondary quality, which were misdeclared as primary quality.
It is established that M/s Balochistan Engineering Works availed undue exemptions under the garb of EDB quota, and disposed the imported goods in the local market instead of consuming the same in manufacturing goods.
Through this forgery, the company evaded government revenue of Rs166 million.
This case was pending for 9 months, as there was only one Additional Director in the Directorate of Customs Intelligence Karachi against 2 positions of Additional Director. Subsequently Sheeraz Ahmed was appointed on second position of Additional Director and now Directorate is working quite efficiently.