LAHORE: A fan manufacturer has failed to stop the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) from posting officers at his business premises to monitor production, sales of taxable goods and their stock position, said sources.

They said the fan manufacturer, upon receiving the order passed by the FBR, preferred an appeal before the tribunal and a stay application. However, he failed to get any relief as the law does not provide a remedy against the order passed by the FBR for monitoring the sales and stock position of a taxpayer.

It may be noted that the FBR carries out monitoring action against a taxpayer under section 40B of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, and the department is authorized to prepare and finalize the monitoring report during the non-cooperation of a taxpayer on any pretext. The department is also fully authorized to issue a show-cause notice for further proceedings. The department carries out these proceedings because the law does not give any right to appeal to a registered person.

It may be noted that the remedy of appeal was provided to the person against the order passed by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue under section 40B of the Act before the amendment through the Finance Act, 2018. It is an immutable principle of law that an appeal cannot be claimed as a right unless provided by the law. It is not a natural and inherent right of litigants but a statutory right granted by different laws by different enactments.

The departmental sources said the arrangement had been made to broaden the tax base. Before the amendment, they said the taxpayers were hindering the department’s monitoring. However, the process of broadening the tax base, as well as an increase in revenue generation has been expedited after the amendment. They said monitoring teams have been installed at the factory premises and sale points of various manufacturers, and counting trucks carrying out stocks and customers at the outlets has helped the department in bridging the tax gap.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024