Lahore: In a major relief to the business sector, Punjab Finance Minister Hashim Jawan Bakht withdrew the tax levied on commercial property classified as ‘self-use’ on Tuesday (September 14), according to news reports. The administration has also extended the traders’ rebate for two weeks until all parties reach an agreement in this respect.
In August, the government imposed a tax on commercial property. However, the traders expressed their dissatisfaction with the imposition of taxes in the federal and provincial budgets and requested that the Chief Minister (CM) offer assistance to the pandemic-affected traders.
According to the details, a meeting was conducted in the provincial Civil Secretariat, with the provincial finance minister presiding. Provincial Minister for Excise and Taxation (E&T) Hafiz Mumtaz Ahmed, E&T Secretary Waqas Ali Mehmood, President Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Tariq Misbah, and All Pakistan Anjuman-e-Tajran (APAT) leaders Waqar Ahmed Mian and Naeem Mir all attended the meeting.
According to LCCI President Tariq, traders will pay all necessary and justifiable taxes, but imposing new property taxes on pandemic-affected traders will impede their economic growth. The head of APAT also brought up the issue of tax notifications sent to dealers and requested the government to make the procedure more transparent. The minister stated that the proposals of the traders would be considered at the next Resource Mobilization Committee meeting in order to reach a mutually beneficial arrangement.
Nauman Ahmad is an imaginative Pisces whose love for literature and nature is unparalleled. When he's not reading or hiking, he's sleeping and eating, which gives him plenty of energy for his next adventure.
