LHC Upholds Cantonment Property Tax Under 1979 Order

The Lahore High Court has affirmed the legal validity of property tax imposed by cantonment boards under Presidential Order No 13 of 1979, read in conjunction with the Cantonments Act, 1924, holding that such taxation falls squarely within their lawful jurisdiction.

The ruling was issued in response to multiple constitutional petitions challenging the vires of Section 3 of the 1979 Order, which authorises cantonment boards to levy urban immovable property tax based on the annual rental value of land and buildings situated within their territorial limits.

The Court concluded that both the imposition and collection of the tax are consistent with the constitutional framework, ensuring fiscal continuity, and determined that no illegality or constitutional infirmity exists in the actions undertaken by cantonment authorities.

Accordingly, Section 3(1)(a) of the Cantonments (Urban Immovable Property Tax and Entertainments Duty) Order, 1979 was declared valid, constitutional, and intra vires the Constitution.

The Court further observed that Presidential Order No 13 of 1979 operates harmoniously within the broader statutory regime and does not create any independent or unconstitutional tax. Rather, it regulates taxation in cantonment areas by excluding the applicability of provincial property tax laws while reaffirming the authority of cantonment boards under federal legislation.

In addressing arguments concerning the Eighteenth Amendment, the Court rejected the contention that the 1979 Order had been impliedly repealed.

It held that the Order continues to remain operative in the absence of any express repeal or legislative amendment by the competent authority, in accordance with Article 270-A(3) and its relevant provisions.