KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 1): The High Court here has on Thursday granted an interim stay application applied by Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd (KL:ASTRO) against the Inland Revenue Board’s (IRB) imposition of RM734.88 million additional tax against the pay television company’s two subsidiaries for the years 2018 to 2023.

The temporary stay was granted by judge Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid against IRB to maintain status quo until the hearing for leave of Astro’s judicial review, which has now been fixed on Nov 20.

This follows the judge having ruled that the sum sought was high.

This was despite an objection made by the IRB against the stay application.

In judicial review proceedings, leave has to be gained first before the merits of the challenge on a government’s decision is heard. This was to ensure that the application is not frivolous or vexatious.

IRB had last month imposed the additional taxes on Astro Shaw Sdn Bhd (ASSB) and Measat Broadcast Network Systems Sdn Bhd, where additional assessment was served against them to the amount of RM22.01 million and RM712.87 million, including penalties for the years between 2019 and 2023.

As a result of this, Astro filed a judicial review application last month to quash the additional assessments imposed against Measat Broadcast and ASSB for the year of assessment of 2019 to 2023.

The additional assessment is said to be about half of Astro’s market capitalisation of RM1.59 billion.

The satellite cable company said the notices for additional assessment were issued since production costs incurred during the said years of assessment were disallowed for deduction, as it had earlier told Bursa Malaysia as well.

Measat Broadcast and ASSB were represented by S Saravana Kumar and Tan Jass Key from Messrs Rosli Dahlan Saravana Partnership.

Senior Federal Counsel Wan Shahida Wan Omar and Federal Counsel Norliza Ab Aziz appeared for the Attorney General Chambers, while the IRB was represented by Muhammad Farid Jaafar and Mohd Faizal Nizom.

Saravana had applied for the stay, citing Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s income tax case, which the former prime minister was challenging in a judicial review application.

The lawyer, when contacted by The Edge, has confirmed the outcome of Thursday’s proceeding.