The Collector of Customs, Model Customs Collectorate, Quetta V. Fazal Muhammad and others,
PTD 2020 1821 · Balochistan High Court
The Collector of Customs challenged a decision by the Customs Appellate Tribunal that had ruled in favour of Fazal Muhammad, a passenger who was caught at Quetta Airport carrying 50,000 Australian dollars while boarding a flight to Dubai. Customs officials had seized the money and imposed a heavy fine, accusing him of smuggling foreign currency because he could not show lawful authority for possessing it. The Tribunal had overturned this penalty, prompting Customs to bring the matter before the Balochistan High Court.
The respondent's position was that the money did not belong to him alone. He said at the time of his arrest that four other people had also contributed to the amount, each around 10,000 dollars, and this was supported by receipts and affidavits filed with the Pakistani Embassy in Dubai confirming their share of the currency. However, the customs investigating officer never questioned these four people to verify the claim, despite having legal power to examine witnesses during such inquiries.
The High Court held that when hearing a customs reference, its role is limited to deciding legal questions, not re-examining facts already decided by the Tribunal, unless those findings are clearly wrong or contrary to the record. Since the investigation was found to be incomplete and the Tribunal's factual findings were not shown to be flawed, the High Court dismissed the Customs Department's reference, upholding the relief granted to the respondent. The case highlights the importance of thorough investigation before penalizing individuals for currency-related offenses at airports.
Urdu translation not yet generated for this case.