ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has taken decisive action against sales tax fraud by forming a high-powered joint inquiry team to investigate and address this pressing issue.
According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, the team has been constituted with immediate effect and comprises the following members:
1. Musadiq A. Malik, Federal Minister – Convener
2. Bilal A. Kayani, Member of National Assembly (MNA) – Member
3. Tanvir Akhtar Malik, Member of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) – MemberRevenue management solutions
4. Ghazi Akhtar Khan – Member
5. Dr. Fareed Zafar – Member
6. Representative of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) – Member
7. Munir Masood Marath, Director/ADG (North), Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) – Member
8. Representative of the Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) – Member
9. Amir Abbas Khan, Director Intelligence and Investigation, Inland Revenue, FBR – Member
Terms of Reference (ToRs)
The inquiry team has been tasked with the following objectives:
1. Examine Intelligence Bureau reports on sales tax fraud cases and analyze financial and accounting transactions. This includes identifying connivance by public officials and PRAL employees with perpetrators and abettors of these frauds.
2. Assess the role of the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) in influencing legal proceedings of sales tax fraud cases and evaluate the impact of their public communications on such cases.
3. Identify policy, automation, and enforcement loopholes that enable sales tax fraud, such as inadmissible input adjustments and fake invoices. Propose concrete measures to eliminate these vulnerabilities.
4. Recommend actions, including departmental and penal measures, against all parties involved to prevent future fraud and address maladministration by FBR officials.
5. Suggest improvements to FBR’s Sales Tax modules to address automation gaps that have contributed to recurring scams and significant revenue losses.
The inquiry team is expected to present its comprehensive report within 30 days, detailing actionable steps to curb sales tax fraud and strengthen the regulatory framework.
This initiative underscores the government’s commitment to combating corruption and safeguarding public revenue by addressing systemic inefficiencies and ensuring accountability.
