Legal custody of 14,000 kg of donkey hides: Customs enforcement-export collectorate tug of war intensifies

KARACHI: A tug of war between Customs enforcement and the export collectorate for taking the legal custody of 14,000 kilograms of donkey hides has intensified with the export collectorate filing a formal complaint against enforcement officials for alleged misconduct and violation of established procedures.

A bitter jurisdictional dispute began on April 29, 2025, when Customs officials discovered the massive consignment of donkey hides during examination of a container at SAPT.

The shipment, declared as “leather goods” by a trading company through their clearing agent, was being exported to China when it was flagged for inspection despite initially passing through the green channel clearance process.

According to a formal complaint, the consignment was first put on hold by the Anti-Narcotics Force on April 29, following routine examination procedures. However, the situation became complicated when the Port Control Unit of the Collectorate of Customs Enforcement applied an additional hold on the container, creating a conflict over which department had legal authority to handle the case.

The export collectorate has accused the deputy collector of the PCU Enforcement of overstepping the jurisdiction and violating established Customs procedures outlined in CGO number 3 of 2018.

The complaint alleged that the deputy collector insisted on taking custody of the container and removing it from the port area without following the proper joint examination procedures required under the regulations.

The banned donkey hides were identified as prohibited exports under an Economic Coordination Committee order from September 2015, which classified such shipments as restricted items. The discovery has highlighted ongoing concerns about illegal wildlife trade and the enforcement of export regulations at Pakistani ports.

It further claimed that the enforcement collectorate acted unilaterally in removing the container from port premises, bypassing mandatory joint examination procedures that require cooperation between both departments, arguing that donkey hides did not fall under the specific mandate of the PCU, which is primarily designed to target narcotics, psychotropic substances, explosives, and other security-related contraband.

The complaint alleged that this incident represents a pattern of jurisdictional overreach by enforcement officials, with the export collectorate providing a list of similar cases where holds were improperly applied to their operations. “Such actions could create serious operational anomalies and increase friction between different customs departments, it added.

Earlier, the enforcement collectorate in an official media statement claimed they successfully intercepted the said banned shipment that had been cleared through the green channel and was being prepared for loading onto a China-bound vessel after getting a permit from the export collectorate. They maintained that their intervention prevented the illegal export of prohibited materials.

The complaint has asked the Federal Board of Revenue to investigate the matter and take action against what the export collectorate describes as misconduct and misuse of authority.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025