KARACHI: Pakistan Customs has warned several banks for suspected contravening the provisions of law. An official said they had information that several banks even after receiving the attachment notices issued by MCC Appraisement East did not freeze the particular banks accounts.
The official said several banks despite clear directives of attaching bank accounts carried on transactions contravening the provisions of the Customs Act and Customs Rules.
Customs Appraisement East has served fresh notices on several banks directing the banks to issue bank statements of the last 3-month period for scrutiny and further necessary action.
“Customs has initiated scrutiny in this regard and if banks are found to have contravened provisions of law, action would be taken against them as per law.
MCC Appraisement East has blocked NTN numbers of over 50 companies/traders suspending all of their imports and exports, as huge sums are outstanding against them and they failed to meet their obligations.
An official said Customs had expedited the campaign to recover government revenue to the tune of Rs2.0 billion outstanding against several companies. This recovery dates back to 2007 and these cases belonged to MCC PaCCS.
Official said Customs Appraisement East was coordinating with the local governments for attachment of properties of the defaulting importers. Moreover, various commercial banks have also been intimidated regarding attachment of bank accounts of defaulting importers.
It is learnt that Customs have obtained wealth statements from the respective regional tax offices (RTOs) of importers/companies/traders to identify the properties and bank accounts of their family members.
The official said that the recoverable amount was not disputed at all and had already been adjudged against the importing companies.