Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Salman Siddique informed the Monitoring and Implementation Committee of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Tuesday that tax recovery cases amounting to Rs154 billion were pending in courts and there was no hope for early decision in this regard.
He said that out of the Rs 154 billion, disputed tax recovery cases of approximately Rs 37 billion were sub-judice in the Supreme Court and had been pending for a longtime. PAC Monitoring and Implementation Committee Convenor Yasmeen Rehman directed FBR authorities to pursue court cases with vigor, asking them to take help from the Ministry and Law and Justice if required. The committee also sought details of sub-judice cases from the FBR. FBR Chairman Salman Saddique denied ginners were given blanket cover from withholding tax.
He explained that cotton procured from farmers was exempted from withholding tax but ginners were liable to pay the tax if they procured it from brokers (arhties).
He said that there were reports that POL product smuggling from Iran was on the rise and steps would be taken to curb it. PAC expressed concern over losses caused by the Afghan transit trade to the national exchequer. The committee asked FBR to take measures to stop the influx of Afghan transit goods back to Pakistan.