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WEEKLY
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| Who compelled PPP leaders to shelve CGT for two years? |
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Monday, June 16, 2008
By Mumtaz Alvi
ISLAMABAD: No one from the treasury benches in the Senate on Sunday either confirmed or denied that the Capital Gain Tax (CGT) was shelved for two years after unidentified persons held negotiations with PPP leaders.
Leader of the Opposition Kamil Ali Agha alleged in his speech during the budget debate that the CGT was not imposed following the landing of a chartered plane from Karachi at Islamabad and talks between the leaders of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and "someone".
His disclosure astonished all and sundry in the Senate and its galleries. Finance Minister Syed Naveed Qamar also spent some time in the house. It was not clear whether or not someone had informed him about this allegation. It is expected that he might clarify his government and the party's position on the matter after the debate is concluded.
The opposition leader reminded the house that the finance minister had declared that the CGT would be imposed, but it was not as someone visited Islamabad and then the imposition was deferred for a couple of years.
"The poor do not afford such special plane and, therefore, they will have to pay more in terms of taxes," the senator charged. ìThe CNG mafia has also been given a free hand to increase rates if and when they so desire.î
In his speech, Pakistan Muslim League Secretary General Mushahid Hussain Sayed also spoke on the subject and claimed that Ishaq Dar had decided to levy the CGT when he was the finance minister.
The PML leader charged that after Dar resigned as minister along with PML-N legislators, the PPP government deferred the tax imposition after having a meeting with brokers. Dar, he claimed, had also proposed wealth tax on the rich but it was also not imposed, hence the rich and elite were spared whereas the poor were burdened further.
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ISSN 1563-9479 
