The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has decided to audit income tax returns of 44 politicians, including Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif who paid Rs 5.13 million in income tax in the last fiscal year, a report in the local media said on Saturday.
Other politicians included in the audit are Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah, Sindh Finance Minister Murad Ali Shah, Pakistan People’s Party Senator Babar Awan, Muttahida Qaumi Movement leaders Dr Farooq Sattar and Khawaja Izharul Haq, Balochistan National Party chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal and Ports and Shipping Minister Kamran Michael. PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari’s brother-in-law, MNA Mir Munawar Ali Talpur has also been chosen.
Of the 44 parliamentarians, 21 belong to PML-N, 10 to PPP, six to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, five to MQM and one each to Jamaat-e-Islami and BNP. The list negates the impression that the federal government is targeting opposition lawmakers, as claimed by senators from opposition parties. However, it will be a test case for the FBR to resist political pressure and conduct an impartial audit.
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on September 14 initiated computerised balloting, not anticipating that 21 parliamentarians from his own party, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, would be among the 75,871 individuals selected for the audit.
