LAHORE - The Lahore High Court (LHC) has dismissed a petition of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) challenging levy of over Rs3.6 million as property tax by excise & taxation department, holding that tax could be levied under section 4(b) of the Act. The court observed that the property of the PCB being leased out by the provincial government could not enjoy exemption from the levy of property tax and the board in view of agreed terms of the lease was responsible to pay all taxes and assessments of every description.
However, the court exempted the PCB property from the tax assessed prior to 2002 when the properties were administered by the provincial government itself and not by the lessees.
The tax department demanded the property tax worth Rs3.6 million from the PCB for the period from 1996 to 2004.
Pakistan Cricket Board through its counsel had challenged the payment of levy of any property tax by referring Section 4(a) & (e) of Urban Immovable Property Tax Act 1958. The board counsel relied on a Sindh High Court’s judgment in which National Stadium Karachi was given exemption against the levy of tax for being a property leased by federal government. After hearing both sides, the judge allowed the government to collect tax from the PCB on properties it owned.