The Federal Constitutional Court has issued a significant ruling regarding tax raids, declaring that tax authorities are legally empowered to conduct raids at any time and at any location without prior notice. The court clarified that advance notification is not a mandatory legal requirement for such actions.
In its decision on an appeal related to tax raids, Justice Aamer Farooq stated that it is not necessary for a case to already be pending against a taxpayer before a raid can be conducted. The court rejected the argument that conducting a raid without an existing case should be deemed unlawful.
The judgment noted that Parliament has granted broad powers to tax authorities for the effective enforcement of tax laws, and the court cannot insert conditions into the law that the legislature has not explicitly included.
The court further observed that where the language of the legislature is clear and unambiguous, courts are not authorized to introduce limitations, modifications, or contradictions into it.
According to the ruling, the Commissioner must specify in writing which law has been violated as the basis for the raid. The court also affirmed that tax authorities have full legal authority to seize computers, documents, and accounts.
Subsequently, the Federal Constitutional Court upheld the decision of the Sindh High Court and dismissed the appeal, thereby maintaining the lower court’s ruling.
