IHC stays blocking of mobile phone SIMs of non-filers

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has stayed the government’s decision to block mobile phone SIMs of non-tax filers, through an injunction issued here today.

This follows an agreement reached on Friday between telecom operators and authorities to begin manually blocking non-filers’ SIMs in small batches, concluding a week-long impasse over the initiative aimed at expanding the tax base.

Process to block SIMS of non-filers starts

The case was brought before IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq by private telecom operator Zong. Representing Zong, lawyer Salman Akram Raja argued that the recent Constitutional amendment enabling this action infringes on the right to freedom of business as outlined in Article 18 of the Constitution.

Raja asserted that no legislation should contravene the fundamental rights protected by the Constitution. He contended that the government should not possess the authority to block mobile phone SIMs through legislative amendments.

FBR provides details of 5,000 non-filers to telecom operators for blocking SIMs

Raja also highlighted that blocking over 500,000 SIMs could result in an annual loss of Rs 1 billion. The IHC has requested a response from the relevant authorities by May 27.