{
  "id": 17162560,
  "title": "Shelled almonds and cashews not smuggled goods under SRO: SC",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/30/shelled-almonds-and-cashews-not-smuggled-goods-under-sro-sc",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-30T02:20:28.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Business Recorder",
    "slug": "business-recorder",
    "url": "https://www.brecorder.com/news/40446602/shelled-almonds-and-cashews-not-smuggled-goods-under-sro-sc"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled that shelled almonds and cashew nuts do not fall within the categories of smuggled goods specified in S.R.O. 566(I)/2005. The judgment, written by Justice Muhammad Shafi Siddiqui, argued that these items do not fit the definition of smuggled goods under section 2(s)(ii) of the Customs Act, 1969. Consequently, the restriction in the proviso to S.R.O. 499(I)/2009, which prevents vehicle redemption for smuggling, is not applicable in this case. The court's decision means that the confiscation of vehicles for smuggling purposes would only be valid if the goods in question were included in the categories listed in the notification and met the requirements of section 2(s)(ii) of the Act. The three-judge bench, including Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Muhammad Shafi Siddiqui, and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, reviewed an appeal from the Collector of Customs MCC (Enforcement) in Quetta against the Balochistan High Court's decision from September 30, 2025. The court noted that the notification's wording and structure do not support this broader interpretation. By not extending the definition to include every conceivable food item, the distinct categories like edible oil, black tea, vegetable ghee, cooking oil, imitation jewellery, and stones remain specified individually. This scheme, the court emphasized, prevents the unrestricted interpretation of the expression in Serial No. 15 to include an additional category of goods that was not listed. In terms of edible goods and beverages, the notification includes food grains and food items of all sorts (Serial No. 15), black tea excluding Op-Pekoe (Serial No. 35), and vegetable ghee and cooking oil (Serial No. 43). This indicates that the authority could theoretically include nuts as a separate category, given their distinctiveness from grains like wheat, rice, maize, barley, oats, millet, and sorghum, as well as pulses and legumes. The court's facts state that on October 20, 2024, customs authorities seized vehicles carrying shell-less almonds and cashew nuts from Nokundi after receiving information about their illegal movement from NLC Terminal, Taftan. The drivers' Goods Declaration contradicted the customs record, claiming the goods were raisins from Iran, with differing vehicle details. The proceedings were initiated against the goods and vehicles for smuggling and illegal removal from the customs area. The confiscation order was later challenged in the Customs Appellate Tribunal and dismissed by the Department, leading to appeals before the Balochistan High Court. The High Court had previously dismissed these challenges. This appeal is now before the apex court.",
  "summary": "ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan held that shelled almonds and cashew nuts do not fall within any of the categories of smuggled goods specified in S.R.O. 566(I)/2005. The judgment, authored by Justice Muhammad Shafi Siddiqui, stated that the subject goods do not fall within the relevant definition of smuggled goods under section 2(s)(ii) of the Customs Act, 1969 on the basis of the…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}