SC directs Aleema to pay Rs. 29.4 as taxes, fine within a week

SC directs Aleema to pay Rs. 29.4 as taxes, fine within a week

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court directed Aleema Khanum, the sister of Prime Minister Imran Khan to pay Rs 29.4 million to public exchequer as taxes and fine, within a week.

A three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar passed the directions while hearing a suo motu case in connection with foreign properties owned by Pakistani nationals.
Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, remarked that failure on Khanum's part to obey court orders will result in confiscation of her properties.

During course of proceedings, on bench query, Sulman Akram Raja counsel for Mss Aleema, apprised the bench that her client bought the property in UAE for $370,000 after getting 50 percent loan of the total amount of the property from the bank in 2008 however after a year it was sold, he added.
Salman Akram Raja further pleaded that Rs.18 millions were due to her client which would be deposited.

However representative of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) objected and said that a fine and tax worth Rs 29.4m has been placed on Khanum, who has been identified as benamidar of a property.
Subsequently, the bench directed Aleema Khanum to pay Rs. 29.4 millions within a week or ready to face adverse action by the authorities.

However, Justice Nisar, remarked that " Miss Aleema will have right of appeal but before that she have to file her income tax returns."
Chief of Justice of Pakistan Justice Mian Saqib Nisar took suo motu notice of Aleema’s property in Dubai on November 28.

The Chief Justice, who was in London to raise funds for building dams in Pakistan, was informally speaking to journalists when they drew his attention to the matter of Aleema Khan’s properties abroad.
Meanwhile, in the same case, the top court also directed Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to register a money laundering case against Senator Waqar as he failed to prove source of transfer of money to abroad and directed Mr Waqar to deposit Rs. 6 million to public exchequer as fine.

APP