JI demands 10 years tax waiver for Malakand

CHAKDARA: Jamaat-e-Islami leader and former minister Dr Inayatullah on Tuesday criticised the federal government for one-year tax waiver and demanded that Malakand Division should be exempted from tax for at least one decade to support the people and traders.

Addressing a press conference here, he said that people of Malakand Division had suffered a lot due to floods, earthquake and militancy and now unprecedented inflation.

Flanked by JI Lower Dir chief Izazul Mulk Afkari, former minister Shashraz Khan and traders leaders from Chakdara and Batkhela, Inyataullah said that people of Malakand Division should be compensated for sacrifices they had rendered during the war on terror.

He said that people were already paying various taxes in electricity, gas, sales tax, income tax and custom tax and urged the government to extend the tax exemption period to at least 10 years so the business community and people could stand on their own feet.

The JI leaders said that the party and people from all segments of society were on the same side with regard to the tax, which will be resisted tooth and nail.

They said that an all parties conference would be convened in which a final decision would be taken about shutter down and wheel-jam strike in Malakand Division.

They said that the Malakand division earlier had the status of Provincial Administered Tribal Areas but that was ended like the erstwhile Fata but the elected public representatives did not resist the government move at that time.

The traders’ leaders vowed that they would go to any extent to resist the imposition of taxes in Malakand division, urging the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) not to think about levying taxes in the ex-Pata.

They also criticized the electricity and gas companies for levying huge taxes in the utility bills and asked the distribution entities to stop sending inflated bills.