July 19, 2015
News
FBR releases list of tax defaulter lawmakers
*Most of non-taxpayer lawmakers belong to ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz
By Kashif Hussain
LAHORE: The Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) has revealed a list of 90 non-taxpayer lawmakers who did not pay a single penny in 2014, despite the fact that their nomination papers filed in the Election Commission of Pakistan read that they were industrialists, traders, lawyers, agriculturists and consultants.
According to the FBR documents, seven percent of a total 1,169 parliamentarians are non-taxpayers. As many as 90 lawmakers are on the defaulters list. Among them 16 senators, 10 MNAs and 64 MPAs are included. The list also includes two MPAs from Balochistan, seven MPAs from Sindh, 27 MPAs from Punjab and 28 MPAs of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa who are included in the list as non-taxpayer lawmakers.
Among the senators, seven highest non-taxpayers belong to KP and five senators from Balochistan stand second while one senator each from FATA, Islamabad, Punjab, and Sindh are also on the list. Four National Assembly lawmakers elected from KP while three from Punjab, two from Sindh and one from Balochistan are also among the non-taxpayers.
Most of the lawmakers on the FBR list belong to the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz while the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is runner up in the race.
Interestingly, Jamaat-e-Islami head Sirajul Haq is the only elected politician who has no bank account and he is also on the FBR list.
The other prominent non-taxpayer lawmakers are Naimatullah Zehri, Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, Azam Hoti, Gulzar Khan and Sayed Essa Nori, Balochistan MPA Abdul Malik, KP MPAs Gohar Ali Shah, Mufti Fazal Ghafoor, Punjab MPAs Tahir Sindhu, Sibtain Khan, Atta Manika and Sindh MPA Fayaz Butt.
Three minority lawmakers and 20 elected on reserved seats for women are also on the list.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk