Latest news with #PresidentialOrdinance
Business Recorder
07-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Traders reject SRO 175, issue ultimatum
KARACHI: Expressing deep frustration and alarm over the Presidential Ordinance introducing SRO 175, trader representatives from across Pakistan strongly condemned the measure in an emergency meeting held here on Tuesday. Organised by the All City Traders Ittehad Association, the gathering marked a unified and forceful rejection of the ordinance, which businessmen described as a "draconian law" that grants unchecked powers to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). Participants voiced grave concerns that SRO 175 would lead to the misuse of authority by tax officials, disrupt commercial activity, and violate fundamental business rights. In response, trader leaders issued a 15-day ultimatum demanding the immediate withdrawal of the ordinance, warning of escalating protests and a nationwide shutdown if their demands are not met. The meeting, held at a local hall, featured physical participation from local trader leaders and video-link attendance by representatives from across the country. Sharjeel Goplani, Patron-in-Chief of the All City Traders Ittehad Association, provided an in-depth critique of the ordinance, calling it economically destructive and constitutionally questionable. He warned that the law empowers the FBR to operate without oversight, posing a serious threat to both businesses and the broader economy. Among the key attendees were Atiq Mir, Hakeem Shah, Minhaj Gulfam, Zahid Amin, Jameel Paracha, Waqas Azim, Rana Rais, Rana Waheed, Muhammad Ahmed Shamsi, Yaqoob Bali, Nasir Makani, Ejaz Bhatti, Chaudhry Ayub, Syed Muhammad Saeed, Aslam Parvez, Muhammad Zaki, Haseeb Akhlaq, Tayyab Siddiqui, Muhammad Ismail Lalpuriya, Maqsood Faraz, Shakir Fancy, Arshad Khan, Asif Gulfam, and others. Via video link, the meeting was joined by Ajmal Baloch (President, Anjuman Tajiran Pakistan), Kashif Chaudhry (President, Tanzeem Tajiran Pakistan), Abdul Rahim Kakar from Quetta, and Sindh-based leaders Ameen Memon and Haroon Memon. Traders unanimously declared SRO 175 a black law and announced the launch of the 'Save the Economy Movement.' They vowed to resist the ordinance through organized civil disobedience. Measures include barring FBR teams from entering marketplaces, boycotting and besieging banks that release funds without account holder consent, and surrounding FBR offices nationwide. If the government fails to respond within the deadline, traders warned of countrywide strikes and potential demonstrations at FBR headquarters and Parliament. 'There is complete national unity among traders on this issue,' the association's spokesperson affirmed in the joint declaration. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Express Tribune
04-05-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Businessmen slam tax ordinance
Listen to article Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) President Mian Abuzar Shad, has termed the recent amendments made through the Presidential Ordinance to the Income Tax Ordinance 2001 and the Federal Excise Act 2005 as dangerous for the business community. He stated that the extraordinary powers granted to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) through this ordinance threaten private business autonomy, civil liberties, and the stability of the economy. Shad called for an emergency meeting of all Chambers of Commerce and Trade Associations across the country, to be held at the Lahore Chamber on Monday. He expressed grave concern over the newly added Section 3A in the Income Tax Ordinance, which allows immediate tax recovery based on a High Court or Supreme Court decision, bypassing the due legal process. Similarly, Clause 6A added to Section 140 empowers the FBR to freeze a taxpayer's bank account and withdraw funds without any prior notice or legal proceedings, which he declared unacceptable. According to the LCCI President, the newly inserted Section 175C authorises the FBR to appoint its officer in any business premises to monitor production, services, and stockan act considered as a direct breach of business confidentiality and a blatant intrusion into private enterprise. Furthermore, amendments to the Federal Excise Act have criminalised the use of fake stamps, barcodes, or labels, tightening the grip on businesses. Granting powers of checking and confiscation to other departments could undermine the constitutional jurisdiction of central authorities.
Business Recorder
04-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
LCCI chief criticizes amendments to Income Tax Ord, Federal Excise Act
LAHORE: President of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI), Mian Abuzar Shad, has termed the recent amendments made through Presidential Ordinance to the Income Tax Ordinance 2001 and the Federal Excise Act 2005 as dangerous for the business community. He stated that the extraordinary powers granted to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) through this ordinance threaten private business autonomy, civil liberties, and the stability of the economy. Responding immediately, Mian Abuzar Shad has called for an emergency meeting of all Chambers of Commerce and Trade Associations across the country, to be held at the Lahore Chamber on Monday at 11:00 AM, in order to formulate a united course of action on the issue. He expressed grave concern over the newly added Section 3A in the Income Tax Ordinance, which allows immediate tax recovery based on a High Court or Supreme Court decision, bypassing the due legal process. Similarly, Clause 6A added to Section 140 empowers the FBR to freeze a taxpayer's bank account and withdraw funds without any prior notice or legal proceedings, which he declared unacceptable. According to the LCCI President, the newly inserted Section 175C authorizes the FBR to appoint its officer in any business premises to monitor production, services, and stock—an act considered a direct breach of business confidentiality and a blatant intrusion into private enterprise. Furthermore, amendments to the Federal Excise Act have criminalized the use of fake stamps, barcodes, or labels, tightening the grip on businesses. Granting powers of checking and confiscation to other departments could undermine the constitutional jurisdiction of central authorities. Mian Abuzar Shad emphasized that enforcing such an ordinance under Article 89 of the Constitution without parliamentary approval goes against democratic norms. He urged the government to immediately review the ordinance and move forward with legislation only after taking all stakeholders into confidence. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Express Tribune
12-04-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
IHC lifts bar on collection of gas levy
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has allowed the government to collect gas levy from captive power plants but barred it from using the money until the ad hoc legislation receives approval of parliament, in an order that addresses the IMF's concerns for now. In its order, the court conditionally lifted its three weeks old stay granted against the recovery of Rs791 per mmBtu gas levy from owners of the factories using gas to produce in-house electricity. The levy has been imposed on the instructions of the IMF to compel industries shift from gas to the national power grid. The government wanted to use the money to reduce the electricity prices by about Rs1 unit in line with an understanding with the IMF. The court released its reserved order after AGP Mansoor Usman Awan through an application sought vacation of the stay under. "Upon consideration of the foregoing, the civil miscellaneous application is hereby allowed, and the interim order is recalled subject to the following express conditions," reads the judge order. The court instructed that "all tax amounts collected from the petitioners under the impugned Ordinance shall be deposited and retained in the Federal Consolidated Fund for the duration of the Ordinance's validity, i.e., 120 days from its promulgation". The court further ruled that the money shall not be appropriated, transferred, or expended for any purpose other than the one provided under the impugned ordinance. The order stated that "in the event that the impugned Ordinance does not receive Parliamentary approval, all sums collected under its authority shall, upon the Ordinance's lapse, be forthwith refunded to the petitioners in full, without deduction or delay". In February, the government had promulgated a Presidential Ordinance to impose off-grid gas levy on these in-house power plants but did not notify the rates. During the IMF talks, it became an issue and on March 7, the government notified a 23% increase in gas rates for industrial captive power plants (CPPs) by imposing a Rs791 per mmBtu grid levy.
