Huzaima Bukhari “The worst form of inequality is to try to make unequal things equal”—Aristotle With the introduction of biometric verification whereby a person can be uniquely identified by evaluating one or more distinguishing biological traits, including fingerprints, hand and earlobe geometry, retina and iris patterns, voice waves, DNA and signatures; one thing stands confirmed;...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq “If we realise that the FBR cannot be fixed, we will create a new FBR. This is because Pakistan’s survival is linked to it. It’s not about our liking or disliking: if our tax collection authority does not function properly, it could lead to a security risk. No nation that relies on...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq The National Assembly, through Finance Act 2012, amended section 37(5) of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 and for the first time levied income tax on capital gain of immovable property. Punjab levied a similar tax in Finance Act 2013 contesting the authority of the federal government to do so. Who has the...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq All efforts in the name of tax reforms undertaken in Pakistan till today have miserably failed. These were nothing but mere patchwork here and there. Institutional reforms based on restructuring and redesigning of tax system have not been given any serious thought by our legislators and policymakers. The Sisyphean...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq It is an undeniable fact that the majority of Muslim world is faced with serious problems of income inequalities and injudicious distribution of wealth amongst the various segments of society. Even in the oil-rich countries, the divide between the poor and the rich is substantially wide. The women get...Read More

Remembering Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq March 8 marks International Women’s Day. On this day while highlighting the issues faced by women all the world and in Pakistan, we must remember Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah, who not only participated in the independence movement during the lifetime of Quaid-i-Azam, but was a great...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq As two-thirds of the tax collected is in the form of indirect taxes and one-fourth of the entire amount comes from petroleum and petroleum products at various stages (which is passed on to consumers), the overall incidence is regressive— Ishrat Husain, Governing the Ungovernable: Institutional Reforms for Democratic Governance Dr. Ishrat Husain,...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “You are free; you are free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other place of worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed that has nothing to do with the business of the State”— Quaid-e-Azam...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq The Prime Minister, while speaking at the awards ceremony held for top 150 taxpayers on February 20, 2019, said “The true VIPs of Pakistan are those people who pay the most tax and such citizens should be felicitated and honoured”. He also said there was a need to change the mindset “under...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq In Pakistan, every effort to promote voluntary tax compliance is countered by an argument that taxpayers’ money is not spent for the purpose it is collected. Many say why we should pay taxes when even fundamental facilities like health and education are denied by the State. The substantial portion...Read More