Senate Rejects the Proposal for Power To Arrest in Tax Fraud Case

It is reported that the Senate Standing Committee on Finance has rejected the proposal of the FBR to arrest taxpayers in tax fraud cases without a court order. It was reported that during the meeting, the Senate Standing Committee had a heated debate, and the FBR chairperson was able to defend the case and uphold the decision regarding giving the FBR powers like police or judges to arrest the person without court orders in tax-related cases. Saleem Mandviwalla, who is the chairperson of finance matters in the senate, totally rejected the FBR request and sent the matter back to the government. 

It was reported that the government of Pakistan, including the FBR, defended its case; however, the Senate was not in a mood to listen to these excuses, as it was highlighted by many senators in the meeting that this would be used to harass taxpayers and there are no checks on FBR officials. However, Chairperson FBR defended his case by saying tax officials have powers to arrest people in Bangladesh and India, so why shouldn't Pakistan also have these powers to enforce tax dues and evasions? However, it was noted that there are many complaints of FBR harassment of even honest taxpayers as well. 

It was also noted that legal issues for the FBR draft of Budget 2025 include that there is no threshold for such an arrest. If, for example, a person has committed tax fraud for 20,000 PKR, then he will also get arrested and jailed for up to 10 years. Which FBR chairperson had no answer. PPP senators also made it clear that there would be no arrest without proper court orders, as the FBR should not be given such powers that would be required to be rolled back in later months.