Palestinian Ambassador to Pakistan Ahmed Jawad Rabei has challenged a Federal Board of Revenue's show cause notice issued regarding a duty-exempted luxury vehicle sale in the Islamabad High Court Wednesday.

The petition has been moved before IHC through advocate Sikandar Naeem Qazi, on behalf of the envoy.

The petition prays that the FBR has issued a show cause notice to the Palestinian envoy regarding the sale of the vehicle despite the fact that the diplomats have the immunity under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations 1961 read with The Diplomatic and Consular Privileges Act 1972 and this notice violates the immunity given under the Convention to the diplomats.

The petition prays the court to declare the petitioner and his property immune from the penal jurisdiction of the customs department in light of the Vienna Convention.

The petition asks the court to declare the actions of the customs department illegal, which were undertaken without consultation of the Foreign Office secretary. Praying the court to "set aside the impugned notice as it suffers from want of jurisdiction to the extent of the petitioner and his property," it contends that seizure of the petitioner's vehicle without notice, and without informing the FO secretary, is illegal.

The FBR, several customs' officials, the seizing officer and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been listed as respondents in the Palestinian envoy's petition. The petition has been fixed for hearing tomorrow; will be heard by IHC CJ Athar Minallah.