Move to tax overseas calls halted by LHC

Government’s move to impose hefty tax on incoming calls from overseas termed unconstitutional by petitioner.

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) suspended the federal government’s notice of a new tax on incoming international calls, Express News reported on Thursday.

The petitioner who raised this issue in the LHC had claimed that the federal government had unconstitutionally and without notifying any competent commission, levied this tax through an executive order.

Justice Aijazul Hasan ordered for stopping implementation on this notification and issued notices to the federal government and all concerned authorities for written statements to be presented on November 5.

The government’s decision to impose a hefty tax on incoming telephone calls from overseas had caused a heated debate in the upper house of parliament with senators belonging to both sides of the aisle categorically rejecting the tax as a burden on overseas Pakistanis.