ISLAMABAD: Commercial banks are not willing to share details of their account holders with the Federal Board of Revenue, according to media reports on Saturday.
According to an FBR document, the board’s anti-benami zones had filed 51 references worth Rs22.8 billion in the last 12 months. These include valuables, commercial assets, luxury vehicles, 60,000-kanal anonymous property and shares worth millions of rupees.
Cases against Omni Group, PML-N leader Chaudhry Tanveer and Techno Engineering were also included in the references.
However, a total of 16 writ petitions were filed against FBR anti-benami zones in Sindh, Lahore and Islamabad high courts.
The FBR [benami] zones are currently investigating 146 unnamed assets worth Rs31.2 billion. An estimated Rs100 billion anonymous transactions were uncovered based on the sugar inquiry report, while anonymous assets worth over Rs72 billion were also revealed in 13 districts of Punjab.
However, the document read, these FBR zones lack proper staff, building, logistics. Adjudicating authorities were formed but appellate tribunals are yet to be established.
FBR has proposed to establish four new zones in Hyderabad, Multan, Faisalabad and Peshawar, it added.
