KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 7 — The High Court will hear next month Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor’s application to stay court proceedings of a government lawsuit to claim almost RM57.17 million in alleged unpaid tax from him for the period 2012 to 2017.

After a case management today before High Court judge Datuk Azimah Omar, reporters who met Tengku Adnan’s lawyer Datuk Satharuban Sivasubramaniam were told that the case will come up for a hearing on February 24.

On February 24, the High Court is expected to hear both Tengku Adnan’s application to stay the lawsuit pending his appeal to the Internal Revenue Board (IRB) for a reassessment of his tax arrears, as well as the application by the IRB for the lawsuit to be decided through summary judgment or without going through a full trial.

On July 24, 2019, the IRB had filed the lawsuit against Tengku Adnan, claiming that he had failed to pay the income tax owed for the tax assessment years from 2012 to 2017 as stated in a March 15, 2019 assessment notice.

The IRB had said that a 10 per cent increase on the income tax owed was imposed as Tengku Adnan did not settle the amount within 30 days of the assessment notice’s delivery, and that a further five percent interest was imposed as the amount remained unpaid after 60 days.

The IRB is seeking for the payment of the income tax arrears together with the interest amounting to a total of RM57,167,069.35, along with a five per cent per annum interest on the amount from the date of the judgment until the date of realisation. 

The tax arrears said to be owed by Tengku Adnan are RM64,444.38 (2012); RM6,614,861.59 (2013); RM8,887,576.69 (2014); RM9,198,523.67 (2015); RM5,520,818.05 (2016); and RM26,880,844.97 (2017).

Tengku Adnan, who was formerly Umno’s secretary-general and is now the party’s treasurer, was also previously the federal territories minister.