KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has restrained the officials of Airport Customs from encashing 63 bank guarantees furnished by Hoora Pharma (Pvt) Ltd. The order was issued on a constitutional petition filed by the company through Dr Farogh Naseem and Barrister Shahrukh Farogh Naseem.
Accordingly, the restraining order was issued to the Collector of Customs, Additional Collector, Deputy Collector (Airport), and the Principal Officer of Dubai Islamic Bank, Karachi. These bank guarantees were furnished under Section 81(1) of the Customs Act 1969 for the provisional release of imported goods.
Hoora Pharma assailed a notice dated October 29, 2025, issued by the Dy. Collector (HQs), instructing the bank to encash the guarantees on the ground that it was issued after the final assessment order of the Customs Department dated October 14, 2025, and thus, a fresh petition is filed on account of this new cause of action.
According to the filing, Customs officials reportedly visited the bank on October 29 and 30, 2025, and pressured staff to issue pay orders worth nearly PKR 330 million against the guarantees.
Dr. Naseem argued that Hoora Pharma had already filed an appeal along with a stay request; however, Customs officials were still trying to recover the money, which he called a malicious and coercive act. He prayed before the court to restrain Customs from taking any recovery action until the appeal is heard.
The Sindh High Court, after going through the case, issued notices to the respondents and the Deputy Attorney General for November 11, 2025, and ordered Customs not to take any action on the encashment notice or cash the pay orders issued by the bank until further orders.
