NWFP trade bodies reject levy of VAT

The traders' organisations of NWFP Tuesday outrightly rejected the levy of value-added-tax(VAT) and initiating any kind of survey for the imposition of any new tax in the war-affected province. The decision was taken at a meeting of the traders' organisations of Mardan, Charsadda, Swabi, Nowshera, Takhtbai, Kohat, D I Khan and Peshawar.
The meeting was presided over by provincial general secretary, Markazi Tanzim-e-Tajiran (MTT), Sharafat Ali Mubarak. Those who attended included President, Tanzeem-e-Tajiran, Mardan, Mohammad Islam, Markazi secretary general, Federation of Shopkeepers' Charsadda Haji Sadiqullah Khan, Sultan Babu (Swabi), Abid Mehmood Afghani (Nowshera), general secretary, Takhtbai, Sher Qayyum, Sher Khan (Kohat), Suhail Kazmi (D.I. Khan), general secretary, Haji Mohammad Ramzan (D.I. Khan), president, Pakistan Chemists & Druggists Association NWFP, Arshad Siddiqui, president, Anjuman-e-Tajiran, Peshawar, Haji Mohammad Afzal, senior vice president, Shaukat Ali Khan, Waris Khan Afridi, Javed Akhtar, Malik Imdad Hussein, Pir Dilawar, Nasrullah Khan, Imran Mantroi, Syed Saleh Shah Bacha, Fayyaz Abdul Hai and presidents and general secretaries of different bazaars of the province including Peshawar.
The meeting rejected the survey initiated by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for registration of traders and shopkeepers in income tax and rejected the levy of the value-added-tax (VAT). Through a unanimous resolution the meeting warned the FBR for carrying forcible surveys for VAT and income tax, saying the responsibility of the law and order situation would rest with the agency concerned. They vowed to fully resist these measures of the FBR.
The traders' organisations of Mardan, Charsadda, Swabi, Nowshera, Takhtbai, Kohat, D I Khan and Peshawar have demanded immediate polls of the provincial chapter of the traders' organisation. The president has been asked for announcement of elections schedule within a period of two weeks.
The meeting rejected the survey initiated by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for registration of traders and shopkeepers in income tax and rejected the levy of the value-added-tax (VAT).
Through a unanimous resolution the meeting warned the FBR for carrying forcible surveys for VAT and income tax, saying the responsibility of the law and order situation would rest with the agency concerned. They vowed to fully resist these measures of the FBR. The trading community, through another resolution called for the abolition of the categorisation under the Prime Minister Relief package for the economic revival of the war-affected province and extension of the incentives of the worst affected areas to all districts of the province.
The meeting called for levy of any new tax or conducting survey for any new tax in the province till June 30, 2012. They also called for the withdrawal of the increase in the power and gas tariffs and exempting NWFP of electricity load shedding.
They demanded that the trading community, whose properties and stocks have been destroyed in different districts, should also be compensated. The meeting warned Frontier Highways Authority (FHA) for guaranteeing the implementation of the previous agreement regarding the rent of 489 shops in district Charsadda, saying any excess in this regard would be resisted.
The meeting asked FHA for resolution of the matter through talks with the traders of Charsadda. The meeting announced dissociation from the so-called All Pakistan Traders' Convention and asked the president of Markaz-e-Tanzeem-e-Tajiran to announced schedule for the polls with a period of 15 days.