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RAZA AHMAD KHAN, J.---Messrs Gadoon Textile Mills Limited, incorporated under the Companies Ordinance, 1984, the petitioner herein, has invoked Constitutional jurisdiction of this Court seeking a declaration to the effect that the petitioner-Company is not liable to pay regulatory duty at the rate of As.5 per Kg. on Viscose Staple Fibre as the demand of the respondents for the payment of the same is illegal, arbitrary, mala fide and without lawful authority. It is further prayed that the respondents be directed to refund the duties, so far paid under protest, and release the bank guarantee, already submitted by the petitioner against the goods which have been duly consumed, without further delay.

2.                  The circumstances leading to the instant petition, briefly stated, are that the Federal Government, by a Notification SRO No.517(I)/89, dated 3rd June, 1989 (hereinafter referred to as the Notification) exempted such raw materials and components as are imported for the exclusive manufacture of goods by a recognised industrial unit located in the approved industrial estate of Gadoon Amazai "from whole of the customs duties and sales tax leviable thereon" albeit subject to certain conditions enumerated therein. Hitherto the goods imported for the petitioner-Company have been ex-bounded when the bank guarantees for the equal amount of customs duties were furnished to the respondents Nos.l and 2. However, these: guarantees have been approved by them and consequently the goods have been released to the petitioner. The said guarantee, however, stood discharged when raw material is consumed by the petitioner. In the wake of this when, on or after 20th September, 1990 the petitioner wanted to further release the bounded goods in the aforesaid manner; respondent No.l, reportedly on the advise of respondents Nos.2 and 3, directed the petitioner that the goods will be released only if the regulatory duty at the rate of Rs.5 per Kg. is paid in cash, notwithstanding the fact that the earlier instructions of respondent No.3 had been that the raw material would be released against bank guarantee. Consequently the petitioner, per force of circumstances had to pay Rs.4,00,775 under protest. It is averred in the petition that this act of the respondents was in negation of the declared policy of the Federal Government in that the Industrial units set up on the Gadoon Amazai Industrial Estate shall be exempted from all sorts of customs duties including surcharge enforced under Finance Ordinance, 1982 and Iqra surcharge under Finance Act, 1985 and it was in pursuance of this policy that the aforementioned notification was issued.