Foreign Exchange (Prevention of Payments) Act, 1972

This 1972 Act gives the Federal Government and State Bank of Pakistan power to control payments related to foreign exchange that had been repatriated to Pakistan under the Foreign Exchange Repatriation Regulation, 1972. Section 2 lets the State Bank -- on its own, or when directed by the Federal Government -- order an authorised foreign exchange dealer, or anyone else holding the rupee equivalent of repatriated foreign exchange, to deposit that amount with the State Bank within a specified time.

The same section lets anyone owed money by the person who repatriated the foreign exchange (or holding a monetary claim against them) apply to the Federal Government for payment of what they're owed, within a time and manner the government specifies by notification. An authorised officer then investigates and can make a payment order, though the person who repatriated the funds must first get a chance to show cause against it. The State Bank pays out according to any such order, and deposits or payments made under this process fully discharge the dealer, other person, or State Bank from further liability on that amount.

Section 3 protects the Federal Government, State Bank, authorised dealers, and other persons from being sued or prosecuted for anything done in good faith under the Act, and retroactively voids any pending suits or judgments on such matters from before the Act's commencement. Section 5 gives rule-making power, and Section 6 sets the penalty for violations: imprisonment up to three years plus a fine, for contravening the Act, its rules, or any direction/order made under it. Section 6A, added in 1974, validates directions the State Bank issued between the Act's commencement and 25 September 1972.

This is a narrow, transaction-specific 1972 law tied to a particular foreign exchange repatriation episode of that era; given its age and specificity, and the fact that a 1996 amendment removed the original bar on court jurisdiction (Section 4), its current practical relevance should be checked against the official text.