Traders term ‘Tajir Dost Scheme’ a trap

ISLAMABAD: The traders’ community has demanded of the government to take them into confidence before expanding tax net.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday along with other trader leaders, Markazi Tanzeem Tajran President Kashif Chaudhry termed ‘Tajir Dost Scheme’ anti-trader scheme.

Markazi Tanzeem Tajran Chairman Khawaja Suleman Siddiqui, General Secretary Abdul Qayyum Agha, Sharjeel Mir, Shaikh Habib, Mian Idrees and other trader leaders were also present at the press conference.

Kashif said the government was deceiving traders’ community while introducing a scheme of Ra1,200 annual tax.

He said the government should do away with 42 different taxes and introduce single tax regime, reduce electricity tariffs, end load-shedding, reduce tax on real estate businesses to one percent, and give incentives to manufacturing and construction industry.

He also asked the government to stop actions against traders in the name of anti-smuggling actions and increase exports. He said that the traders community supports expansion of tax net but the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) should refrain from sucking blood of those who already pay taxes.

He alleged that the bureaucracy had always been misguiding governments by presenting wrong statistics which never resulted in increasing country’s income but increased corrupt practices instead.

The trader leader suggested that more taxes should be imposed on landlords, mafias, retired generals and judges, and against those mentioned in Dubai leaks. He maintained that the trader community had already rejected ‘Tajar Dost Scheme’ and would continue to oppose the same as it is deception on part of FBR to trap traders. “This scheme is being launched without consulting traders’ community,” he said.