A tax for the poor that rich never paid
Dr. Ikramul HaqThe fiscal woes of Pakistan are due to naked defiance of the rich to pay due taxes on their enormous incomes/wealth. A progressive tax (Income Support Levy), legislated in 2013, remains unpaid till today by 99% parliamentarians and…
World of anomalies
Huzaima Bukhari“The world is a strange place where those that lack modesty are considered beautiful. Cheats are considered clever and the loyal are considered fools”— Hazrat Imam Ali Abul Hassan (Alaihissalam).Certain qualities are generally considered most desirable in human beings….
Law of binding precedents
Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul HaqINTRODUCTIONIn view of the hierarchical character of the judicial system in Pakistan, it is of paramount importance that the law declared by courts should be certain, clear and consistent. Inconsistencies create distrust in the administration…
Productive tax reforms
Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul HaqAll efforts in the name of tax reforms undertaken in Pakistan till today have miserably failed. These were nothing but mere patchworks here and there. Restructuring and redesigning of tax system has not been given…
Political economy of tax exclusions
Dr. Ikramul HaqThe tax codes of Pakistan at the federal level—Sales Tax Act, 1990, Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, Customs Act, 1969 and Federal Excise Act, 2005—contain numerous exemptions and concessions, majority of these were added, modified or withdrawn through executive…
Soreness in society
Huzaima Bukhari“A sick society must think much about politics, as a sick man must think much about his digestion.”—CR Lewis (1898-1963), British writer and lay theologian“I contend that most emotional distress is best understood as a rational response to sick…
Reluctant return filers
Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq“FBR has until 10.10.2018 received 482,275 Income Tax returns for the Tax Year 2018, which are 170,208 more than the 312,067 Income Tax returns received for Tax Year 2017 by the same date, registering an…
Tax Directory 2016—Analysis
The top 500 companies in Pakistan paid Rs 364.325 billion in taxes during 2016-17. Out of 79,728 companies included in the Tax Directory 2016-17, about 32,943 of them paid no tax and 22,312 paid less than Rs 1 million in…
Pending cases in Courts of Pakistan (as of 30.09.2018)
PendencyNo. of JudgesCase per JudgeSupreme Court of Pakistan40,243172367Federal Shariat Court422584Lahore High Court, Lahore165,515562956High Court of Sindh, Karachi92,169342710Peshawar High Court, Peshawar29,624171743High Court of Balochistan, Quetta6,8428855Islamabad High Court17,08553417District Courts, Punjab1,095,5421291848District Courts, Sindh101,059359282District Courts, KPK209,984313671District Courts, Balochistan13,96917182District Courts, Islamabad36,29149568TOTAL1,810,7452,325779