Law: Constitution of Pakistan, 1973

Section: 23,24,10A,7

Law: General Clauses Act, 1897

Section: 24-A

(a) Constitution of Pakistan--- ----Arts. 23, 24, 4, 10A & 7---General Clauses Act (X of 1897), S.24-A---Power of State to impose and collect taxes---Constitutional provisions as to property of citizens and protection of property rights---Due process and natural justice in imposition of taxes---Non-association of tax payer in assessment proceedings as a violation of due process---Scope---Power to impose tax was predominant and paramount attribute of the State under Art. 7 of the Constitution; however imposition and collection of tax necessarily had an effect of depriving a citizen from his property, to which he was entitled under Art.23 of the Constitution and Art.24 of the Constitution bestowed a Fundamental Right that he shall not be deprived of his property which was saved under law---Non-association of any citizen in assessment proceedings, for charging of a tax not only amounted to denial of fair trial and dealing with him against the law, but was a sheer violation of due process which was meant to protect a citizen from arbitrary use of executive power; exercised without following exact course of law---Such non-association in assessment proceedings also amounted to condemning a citizen unheard ---Assessment of a tax, levied under a valid statute, was meant to determine the tax liability subject to conditions stipulated in law and a taxpayer, who fell within the mischief of a charging provision had Fundamental Right to defend himself from such levy or its charging as per the conditions under a statute---Any doubt in the charging provision had to be resolved in favour of the taxpayer because it deprived the taxpayer from his/her property, therefore, the same fell within the exception under Art. 24 of the Constitution---For providing opportunity to defend, issuance of show cause notice was mandatory, therefore, any assessment order without issuance and due service of the show-cause notice was a nullity in law and if a statute did not provide specifically for issuance of show cause notice, such procedure had to be prescribed by subordinate legislation under said statute---On receipt of reply to such show-cause notice, an assessing officer was bound to…