ASG METALS LIMITED vs The COMMISSIONER INLAND REVENUE, ZONE-IV S — 2025 PTD 459 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH

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ASG METALS LIMITED VS The COMMISSIONER INLAND REVENUE, ZONE-IV S. 11---Civil Procedure Code (V of 1908), S. 9---Issuance of Show Cause Notice by the Tax Authorities, challenging of----Civil suit before the Single Bench of the High Court---Maintainability---Original Civil jurisdiction of High Court---Discretion of the High Court---Scope---Show-Cause Notice was issued to the Registered Person / Company under S. 11(2) & 11(3) of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, whereby, it had been alleged that it was liable to pay an amount (of Rs.59,712,503/-) and as to why the same might not be assessed against it---Registered Person / Company (plaintiff) impugned said Show-Cause Notice by way of filing civil suit before the Single Bench of the High Court against the Tax Authorities (defendants)---Defendants raised objection regarding maintainability of civil suit before the Single Bench of the High Court---Validity---If at all a suit was maintainable, even then a direct challenge to a Show-Cause Notice without availing the remedy before the Adjudicating and the Appellate Authority was deprecated by the Courts---Present (Single Bench of High Court) was not required to decide the controversy in hand, which apparently related to the alleged denial of input tax claimed by the plaintiff, if any, whereas admittedly it was not a case of any jurisdictional defect or the competency of the concerned officer---If at all, even if a legal question was raised, it was not mandatory upon the Court to entertain a Civil Suit in all run of the mill cases; rather, the discretion vested in the Court had to be exercised with restraint and not as a matter of routine---Therefore, a mere show-cause notice by itself is not a ground to invoke Original Civil jurisdiction of High Court, and the plaintiff ought to have approached the defendants (Tax Authorities) for raising all such legal issues---Abstinence from interference at the stage of issuance of Show-Cause Notice in order to relegate the parties to the proceedings before the concerned Authorities must be the normal rule---Suit filed by registered person, being non- maintainable, was dismissed.

ASG METALS LIMITED vs The COMMISSIONER INLAND REVENUE, ZONE-IV S — 2025 PTD 459 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH

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