August 21, 2023 (MLN): Federal Board of Revenue of Pakistan (FBR) must take concrete steps to put an end to all types of discrimination, particularly in Section 7E of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001, which has recently been withdrawn solely for filers and non-filers in Punjab, President Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI) Mohammed Tariq Yousuf stated, as per the latest press release issued.
"It is a well-known fact that the majority of real estate activities take place in this city. So, the business community of Karachi would suffer the most because of the complicated Section 7E concerning the sale or transfer of immovable property," he said.
He added that the Quetta Chamber of Commerce has obtained a stay order from the High Court of Baluchistan, which has restrained FBR from taking any coercive measures based on Section 7E of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001.
Yousuf mentioned that, in response to Lahore High Court’s judgment, FBR immediately issued Circular No. 3 of 2023-24 dated August 15, 2023, stating that Section 7E would not apply in cases falling within the jurisdiction of LHC. Therefore, the conditions outlined in Circular No.1 of 2023-24 dated July 21, 2023, would not apply in Punjab.
He highlighted that such discriminatory attitudes towards Karachi have continued over time, citing examples such as the provision of cheaper RLNG (Re-Gasified Liquefied Natural Gas) at the rate of $9 per MMBtu to businesses in Punjab only.
He also pointed out discrimination regarding the Valuation Chart, which includes the constructed area for Karachi but not for other regions. This, he said, appears to be a deliberate attempt to discourage future investments in Karachi.
"It seems that the government and its institutions like FBR want the business community of Karachi to come out on the streets to wide protest against FBR’s discriminatory attitude towards Karachi," he stated.
"which, if happens, would send a very negative message and would prove disastrous for the economy as no foreign investors would look forward to Karachi for investment purposes because of all such anti-business moves which are purely focused on destroying the business activities in Karachi."
Considering Karachi's substantial contribution of more than 68% of revenue to the national exchequer, President KCCI hoped that the Chairman FBR would give special attention to this issue and immediately order the complete withdrawal of Section 7E.
He believed this action would be widely welcomed by the entire business community, not only in Karachi and Sindh but also in all other provinces of the country.
The entire taxation structure needs reforms and it has to be simplified to such an extent that the maximum number of individuals are encouraged to get into the tax net instead of staying away due to the hardships faced by loyal taxpayers.
Tariq Yousuf recalled that during the last visit of the FBR Chairman to KCCI, Amjad Zubair Tiwana was all for an out-of-court settlement, and in this regard, an FBR-KCCI joint committee was formed to look into Sales Tax Refunds and other taxation affairs.
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Posted on: 2023-08-21T12:12:53+05:00
