ISLAMABAD: Lahore High Court (LHC) has directed Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to provide orders passed by the FBR on the recommendations of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Committees (ADRCs) to the applicant Waheed Shahzad Butt through the process provided under Right of Access to Information Act, 2017.
Details of the issue revealed that Intra Court Appeal preferred by Chairman FBR against tax lawyer Waheed Shahzad Butt has been disposed of by a double bench of LHC vide order dated 04.12.2024 and issue directions to the FBR to decide the matter within 2 months from the date of receipt of certified copy of order.
Earlier, former Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) Dr Muhammad Shoaib Suddle passed a landmark order to provide ‘orders’ passed by the FBR on the recommendations of the (ADRCs) to the said advocate.
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This is first of its kind of order issued by the FTO with direction to the FBR to provide ‘orders’ passed by FBR on the recommendations of the ADRCs, under Freedom of Information Ordinance, 2002 (FIO) as guaranteed by Article 19-A of the Constitution, which has not been implemented by the FBR but challenged before High Court.
FTO has ruled out that it is a fundamental right of every citizen to seek information which
would enable him to evaluate the ADRC’s operational effectiveness as an alternative dispute resolution forum.
Meanwhile, tax lawyer Waheed Shahzad Butt has written a letter to the Chairman FBR, requesting him to provide recommendation issued by ADRCs under section 134A of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001; u/s 47A of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, especially orders passed by Chairman on recommendations issued by ADRC. In response to application instead of providing the requisite information under the law, it was declined to provide it under section 8(g) of the FIO. FBR has termed it as a very sensitive issue.
Access to information is a sine qua non of constitutional democracy. The public has a right to know how public functionaries do their job. The responsibility of public functionaries to disclose what they do and how they do works against both corruption and highhandedness.
As a rule, information should be disclosed. Only as an exception, privilege could be claimed on justifiable grounds permissible under the law, FTO order added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024