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Aftab Maken
ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial presented a list of sugar mills allegedly involved in billions of rupees worth of tax fraud to the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance.
According to reliable sources, the owners of these sugar mills include prominent political and business personalities, raising serious concerns over elite capture and financial accountability.
As per official FBR documents, Sakrand Sugar Mills was found involved in the illegal sugar trade, specifically unauthorized sugar filling, and punitive action has already been taken. Similarly, Chamber Sugar Mills was caught supplying sugar through unlawful means and is also under FBR investigation.
The crackdown intensified as Degree Sugar Mill was sealed for concealing production records—an alarming tactic in the ongoing tax evasion scandal.
The FBR also took decisive action against Joharabad Sugar Mill for supplying sugar without the Track and Trace System. The warehouses of the mill were sealed to prevent further illegal activity.
Moreover, Tandlianwala Sugar Mills faced action for failure to install CCTV cameras, a regulatory requirement. Al-Moiz Industries Unit II was also penalized for unauthorized sugar packing, while Tarraq Corporation Jaranwala was found involved in manipulating sugar production data, triggering further legal proceedings.
Parliamentary clash erupts
Tensions flared during the committee session chaired by PPP’s Naveed Qamar when PTI leader Omar Ayub questioned the FBR’s import policy model.
“What is this import model? Explain it clearly,” Ayub demanded. The FBR Chairman responded, “It requires time to understand. If you give us two hours, we can brief you separately in full detail.”
Unimpressed, Ayub lashed out, saying, “You write everything in English and can’t explain it in one line. That means you don’t have an answer. Brief us here; we have only four days to finalize the committee’s proposals.”
The exchange turned into a heated argument. Ayub accused the Chairman of avoiding questions, to which Naveed Qamar replied, “We can’t discuss this right now. Let’s move on.”
Reforms to boost exports
Earlier, the Commerce Secretary informed the committee of proposed sweeping reforms to Pakistan’s customs tariff regime, a move aimed at increasing exports and rationalizing revenue.
He said that over the next five years, Customs Duty, Additional Customs Duty, and Regulatory Duty will be gradually reduced to zero on various tariff lines. The proposal includes reducing:
- Additional Customs Duty from 3.66% to 1.76% in the first year
- Regulatory Duty from 4.60% to 2.71%
- Overall Customs Duty from 11.93% to 9.7% over five years
These changes are expected to enhance exports by 10% to 14%, while imports may rise by 5% to 6%. However, a Rs. 500 billion revenue shortfall is anticipated due to these reductions.
The Minister of State for Finance said that the Tariff Policy Board has submitted its recommendations to the federal cabinet. Meanwhile, the Commerce Secretary further elaborated:
- 896 tariff lines to have duty reduced from 3% to 0%
- 1023 lines from 11% to 10%
- 496 lines from 16% to 15%
- Several other lines to witness reductions in additional duties
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb acknowledged that work on tariff lines has been ongoing for the past eight months. “To maintain balance of payments, we had increased duties to discourage imports. As revenue started to recover, we maintained duty collection. Now, the government has decided to streamline tariffs for long-term sustainability,” he said.
