PIC compensation payment soon

The bench, headed by Justice Tasadduq Hussain Jilani, was informed that the families had not been paid any compensation so far, and that this had aggravated their financial difficulties.

The owners of Efroz Pharmaceutical, assured the court that Rs300,000 will be paid to the families of the patients who had died and Rs50,000 to the families of those otherwise affected by the contaminated drug.

A government law officer opposed the proposal and argued that the company should pay Rs500,000 for each death and Rs300, 000 to each affected person. The court directed the owners to pay compensation and submit a report in one week.

Who are Mian Sharif’s heirs?

A division bench of Lahore High Court on Thursday heard 52 identical petitions filed in 1995 by members of the Sharif Family challenging the assessment of income tax due from Mian Muhammad Sharif and his son Mian Abbas Sharif who have both passed away.

The bench, comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Mrs Ayesha A Malik, remarked that it was an 18 year old case and needed to be decided at the earliest.

The bench directed the petitioner counsel to submit the list of the two men’s heirs within 15 days. Tariq Malik, the Sharif’s lawyer, had submitted that the Income Tax Department had assessed the liability of the Ittefaq Group and its directors at Rs20 million, but it was later raised to Rs400 million during Benazir Bhutto’s first government.

Malik argued that the revised assessment was overturned on an appeal and was reduced to Rs20 million during Nawaz Sharif’s first government.

Malik said that during Bhutto’s second tenure the Income Tax Department had moved another appeal and the tax amount was raised to Rs650 million. Malik said that an objection was raised to the revised assessment as it was came 1,213 days after the original assessment instead of the normal 60 days period. He said the whole decision to raise the amount to Rs 650 million was illegal.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 7^th, 2013.