PHC Bans Unclear Taxes in Electricity Bills

The Peshawar High Court has prohibited the collection of taxes and levies on electricity bills when the charges are not clearly itemized or explained. The court heard a case challenging the addition of various taxes to electricity bills and issued a written order following the previous hearing. The court halted the collection of taxes from the petitioner's electricity bill when the charges were included without details.

The petitioner's lawyer informed the court that the applicant consistently pays electricity bills, but the August bill contained additional taxes without any explanation. The relevant authorities instructed the petitioner to decode a barcode printed on the bill. Upon decoding, it was found that extra taxes, termed Extra Tax and Further Tax, had been charged.

The petitioner argued that these taxes had never been present in their electricity bills before and no clear explanation had been provided for their imposition. The Peshawar High Court postponed the further hearing of the petition until September 2.