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The Sindh High Court (SHC) has decided to initiate contempt of court proceedings against three senior Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) officers in a tax fraud case against fashion designer Nomi Ansari.
The court expressed anger after the FBR and the federal government failed to satisfy queries regarding actions taken against the petitioner.
Chief Justice Junaid Ghaffar noted that instead of explaining its mechanism, the FBR registered a criminal case against the petitioner.
The court ordered contempt charges to be framed against Chief Commissioner of Inland Revenue Zahid Masood, Commissioner of Inland Revenue Rizwan Memon, and Assistant Commissioner of Inland Revenue Sehrish Javed.
The indictment is set for August 20, with notices issued to the Advocate General of Sindh and the Prosecutor General of Sindh.
READ: Tax Fraud Case: Court bars FBR from taking action against Nomi Ansari
During the hearing, FBR counsel Zahid Ibrahim requested more time to file a reply. However, the court said the deadline for counter-affidavits had passed and announced that the parties would be indicted.
Petitioner’s counsel informed the court that the SHC had earlier suspended proceedings in the tax case. He further revealed that Nomi Ansari’s name was placed on the Passport Control List and she was stopped from travelling to Dubai on June 9.
The counsel added that the petitioner had been scheduled to represent Pakistan at a US fashion show on July 9 but was unable to attend due to travel restrictions.
The court had sought reasons from Inland Revenue for registering the criminal case, but no satisfactory explanation was provided.
