Lahore: An enforcement team of the Punjab Revenue Authority (PRA) sealed on Saturday renowned fashion designer Hassan Sheheryar Yasin’s (HSY) outlet on Ali Zeb Road in Gulberg-III after an FBR officer allegedly manhandled a monitoring official and a journalist.
A day earlier, the PRA had deputed monitoring staff at the outlet after failing to receive tax returns from the designer.
A senior official at the PRA told Dawn that a BPS-20 officer of the FBR in his personal capacity threatened their official and forced him out of the premises. He said earlier HSY’s staff did not allow the official to monitor sales invoices and refused to show him the documents.
He said the FBR officer, visited the outlet, introduced himself as a commissioner and asked PRA official Rizwan Gondal to leave the premises. He also tried to contact the authority’s high-ups for stopping the monitoring. He said the officer seemed to be intervening on behalf of the designer. It was revealed later only that he was acting in his personal capacity.
A few hours later, a private TV channel reporter arrived at the outlet, but the FBR officer pushed her, took away her camera and forced her out. He then grabbed the PRA monitoring official from collar, shoved him, threatened him with dire consequences and told him to leave.
Later, Additional Commissioner (Enforcement) Ayesha Ranjha, flanked by a police team, reached the premises and got it sealed.
PRA Chairperson Dr Raheel Siddiqui requested the FBR chairman on phone for departmental action against the bureau officer for interfering in official matters.
