LAHORE: Lahore Tax Bar Association (LTBA) President Munsha Sukhera said that taxpayers constitutionally enjoy some rights and their arrest and harassment at the hands of a few Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) officials is worrisome and against the fundamental rights and the board’s basic policy of friendliness and transparency. He was talking to Customs Today here at his Lahore Tax Bar office on Friday.
Most of the times taxpayers were harassed and arrested for tax evasion but afterward they were proved innocent, he said, adding that in such case their goodwill suffers irreparable loss.
He said this was due to the results of the FBR officials who don’t follow due process prescribed in the Income Tax and other acts.
The FBR authorities must follow the process before taking any corrosive measures and the law should take its due course. Quoting example of Regional Tax Office, Zone-4, he said that the Zone Commissioner arrested a number of taxpayers without following the due process and is making recovery under threat.
He added that the FBR intelligence also adopted the same procedure and making recoveries under threat sabotaging the fundamental rights of the taxpayers.
The LTBA president underscored that due to the very reason people avoid being registered with the FBR and in the result of it the state’s revenue collection is suffering.
He suggested that the FBR chairman’s approval should be sought before any corrosive measures against the taxpayers.
