Party also tops the list of zero taxpayers with 21 MNAs

ISLAMABAD: A PML-N MNA has emerged as the top taxpayer and a JUI-F lawmaker is at the bottom of the list of those National Assembly members who have contributed something to the public exchequer while 40 MPs have either not filed tax return or declared zero taxable income.
Sheikh Fayyaz-ud-Din has paid the highest amount (Rs13.32 million) as tax while Molvi Agha Muhammad from Pishin is the lowest taxpaying MNA. When it comes to zero taxpayers (or who have not filed tax returns), PML-N again tops the list with its 21 MNAs falling in this category followed by PTI’s eight lawmakers, four from PPPP, two from MQM, and one each of NP, JI and JUI-F besides other smaller parties and independent MNAs, according to an analysis of tax directory made by Shan Rizvi, an expatriate Pakistani in technology business.
Among the top-ten taxpayers in the assembly, nine are from PML-N and one from PPPP. Incidentally, top three taxpayers are from South Punjab and two of them from Rahim Yar Khan alone.
While Sheikh Fayyaz from Rahim Yar Khan is at the top with Rs13.32 million tax, PML-N’s Ch. Iftikhar Nazir from Khanewal is ranked second (Rs9.07 million) and Rahim Yar Khan’s PML-N MNA Mian Imtiaz Ahmed is at third position (Rs6.98 million).
Hamza Shehbaz of PML-N is the fourth highest taxpayer (Rs4.88 million) and Faryal Talpur of PPPP comes at the fifth position in this ranking with Rs4.82 million tax in 2014. Defence minister Khawaja Asif is the sixth highest taxpayer (Rs4.72 million), followed by four other PML-N MNAs in top-ten ranking: Bhawan Das (Rs4.11 million), Ispanyar M. Bhandara (Rs3.62 million), Omar Ayub (Rs3.48 million) and Ch. Shahbaz Babar (Rs3.14 million).
As PML-N’s top taxpaying MNAs has already been featured in the overall ranking of top-ten, party-wise comparison of other political outfits has also produced interesting results. Faryal Talpur remains at the top in PPPP followed by Syed Ghulam Mustafa Rs2.67 million tax, Amir Ali Magsi Rs1.98 million, Ayaz Soomro Rs1.09 million and Mahreen Razaque Bhutto Rs1.04 million.
Shah Mehmood Qureshi is the top taxpayer among PTI MNAs (Rs1.53 million). Dr. Shireen Mazari comes second with Rs1.12 million followed by Amjad Ali Khan Rs834174, Qaisar Jamal Rs820769 and Ghulam Sarwar Khan Rs717767.
Sohail Mansoor Khawaja is MQM’s top taxpayer with Rs3.09 million tax. He was decorated in the past with Sitara-e-Imtiaz for being the highest taxpayer at Pakistan level by contributing more than Rs75 million to revenue under the head of personal tax. Incidentally, his tax has been on decline since the honour was conferred on him.
Sohail is followed by Muhammad Ali Rashid (Rs2.94 million), Sanjay Perwani (Rs715238), Syed Ali Raza Abidi (Rs493890) and Kishwer Zahra (Rs490016). Among religeo-political party, JUI-F’s top taxpayer is MNA Aasiya Nasir who paid Rs106377. Maulana Qamar Din follows her with Rs55902, Jamal-ud-Din Rs41241, Aliya Kamran Rs31377 and Maulana Gohar Shah Rs31377.
Five lowest taxpaying members of the National Assembly include Molvi Agha Muhammad (Rs1886) of JUI-F followed by PML-N MNA Uzair Khan (Rs3362), Shamas-un-Nisa of PPPP (Rs8635), Syed Ashiq Hussain Shah of PML-N (Rs11021) and Sahibzada Muhammad Yaqub of JI (Rs11174).
As many as 40 MNAs who are either zero tax payers or have not filed tax returns include 21 PML-N MNAs, eight from PTI, four from PPPP, two from MQM and of other smaller parties. Independent MNA Jamshed Dasti who is fighting against corruption also falls in the category of non-taxpayers.
PML-N MNAs who paid zero tax are: commerce minister Khurram Dastgir Khan, food security minister Sikandar Hayat Bosan, religious affairs minister Sardar Yousaf, Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, Alam Dad Lalika, Chaudhry Jaafar Iqbal, Sahibzada Nasir Sultan, Chaudhry Nadeem Abbas, Dr. Shizra Mansab Ali Khan, Faiz-ul-Hassan, Malik Sultan Mehmood, Nazir Ahmed Jutt, Rao Muhammad Ajmal Khan, Sardar Shafqat Hayat Khan, Shahab-ud-Din, Syed Ashiq Hussain Bokhari, Syed Javed Ali Shah, Waheed Alam Khan, Abdul Rehman Kanju, Sar Zamin Khan and Tariq Iqbal Chaudhry.
PTI’s eight zero taxpayers are: Dr. Arif Alvi, Azhar Jadoon, Murad Saeed, Amirullah Marwat, Aqibullah, Dawar Khan Kundi, Gulzar Khan and Mujahid Ali.PPP MNAs falling in this category are: Makhdoom Amin Faheem, Ghulam Rabbani Khar, Sardar Kamal Khan Chang and Shah Jahan Baloch. MQM MNA Salman Khan Baloch who was also lawyer of Wali Babar’s killers and Sajid Ahmed are MQM’s zero taxpaying MNAs.