Under the crackdown against textile tycoons, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has registered an FIR against directors and officers of M/s Salfi Textile Karachi owned by TATA Group for committing violations of SRO.283(I)/2011 and SRO.1125(I)/2011.
A senior FBR official told Business Recorder on Tuesday that the noose has been tightened around textile tycoons involved in sales tax evasion. The biggest textile groups have been taken to task for committing serious violations of sales tax laws. Major offences have been committed by certain textile units in Karachi, Lahore and Multan. The Directorate General of Intelligence and Investigation Inland Revenue Karachi has got registered an FIR against the directors and officers of the unit.
The directorate has initially detected sales tax default of Rs 30 million against the unit. The FBR has also provided proper opportunity to the unit to explain its position, but the unit could not clarify the discrepancies raised by the directorate. A violation of SRO.283 (I)/2011 and SRO.1125 (I)/2011 have been committed by the said unit, official added. When contacted, FBR Member Inland Revenue Operations Raza Baqir confirmed that the FIR has been registered against the unit of Karachi.
Meanwhile, sources said that the action has forced the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) to pay taxes and a strategy is being finalised by the FBR and the association for payment of due amount of sales tax. This has been agreed in a meeting between the FBR and Aptma held here on Tuesday at the FBR House. The notification to be issued by the FBR would impose 2 percent sales tax at all stages of supplies made to both registered and unregistered persons. Input tax adjustment would be available to supplies made to the registered persons and no adjustment would be allowed to local supplies to unregistered persons.
In Karachi, sources said that the Directorate General of Intelligence and Investigation Inland Revenue Islamabad has also detected a case of M/s Ahmaric involving bogus sales tax refund of Rs 29 million. On the intervention of the DG Intelligence and Investigation IR Islamabad, the Chief Sales Tax Refund Office Umer Wahid has requested the SBP not to clear the cheques issued earlier. The directorate has stopped clearance of cheques involving bogus sales tax refunds from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). The refund cheques were already issued which were stopped from the SBP and 'Red Alert' had been issued for initiation of criminal proceedings against the unit.
Similar action has already been taken in case of G Muhammad Textile Karachi. Sources said the biggest crackdown has been launched in Lahore and five FIRs would be registered against leading textile units of Lahore. In the next 1-2 days, crackdown against top textile tycoons would be launched in Lahore.
The FBR has obtained solid evidence about some leading textile families of Lahore who have committed an engineered fraud to show bank accounts transactions to fulfil condition of section 73 of the Sales Tax Act, 1990. The FBR has traced bank accounts opened on the CNICs of servants of the textile owners to show fulfilment of section 73 of the Sales Tax Act. The bank accounts were being operated by the textile owners which were actually opened in the name of low ranking persons or their poor employees. The FBR has solid evidence that how the section 73 was misused by some leading textile groups in Lahore.
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