ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has observed that the Customs officials are involved in the smuggling of vehicles by taking money and later seizing them.

A three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa and comprising Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Athar Minallah, on Monday, heard the case related to the seizure of a smuggling truck by the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Customs authorities

During the proceedings, the chief justice reprimanding the customs lawyer said neither you are giving the facts of the matter nor talking about the law. He questioned how without the knowledge of the customs authorities, the vehicle was caught 400 km from the border in Peshawar.

The Customs officials first take money to smuggle the vehicles and later on, seize them, he added.

Qazi Faez Isa stated that why an inquiry should not be made against the customs department. The truck was manufactured in 1996 and seized in 2016, where did it run for 22 years, and where does the smuggling take place?

A truck is not a matchbox that you can bring it in, in the pocket. He asked why the Customs’ authorities are not aware of from where did the truck come.

Go to Peshawar and see how vehicles are smuggled.

He added that the collector of customs should tell what is happening in Pakistan. The customs officials started an unnecessary litigation, the matter reached the Supreme Court and then wasted the time of the courts.

Due to such unnecessary cases, the real cases in the courts cannot be heard, therefore, future customs authorities should avoid filing such unnecessary cases, warned the CJP.

Meanwhile, Justice Athar Minallah said after the smuggling of the vehicles into the country, tampering is done and the chassis numbers of the vehicles are changed. Later, the court dismissed the Customs’ appeal.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023