IHC suspends single bench's LG poll verdict

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) suspended on Wednesday a single-bench verdict that directed the conduct of local government elections in the federal capital within four months and struck down a notification by the Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) regarding property tax.

A division bench comprising Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir and Justice Raja Inam Amin Minhas heard intra-court appeals filed by the MCI challenging the earlier judgment of Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani. The bench restored the MCI's notification on the enhancement and extension of property tax to new areas and issued notices to the respondents for their replies.

The appeals, moved through Advocate Kashif Malik, contested the single-bench ruling that had accepted petitions filed by Munir Chaudhry and Ahmad Hasan Rana, which had invalidated the MCI's January 23, 2024 notification on the revised property tax structure.

The MCI's counsel argued that the impugned notification had not been published in the official gazette and was only a draft, not a final order.