Taxes on purchase of land opposed

MANSEHRA: The chairmen of village and neighbourhood councils on Thursday threatened to launch a street agitation if taxes imposed by the federal government are not withdrawn.

“The federal government has first imposed the withholding tax on sale and purchase of the land, and now enhanced it to overall 20 per cent, which is unacceptable to us at any cost,” the chairman of village council Safada, Basharat Ali Swati, told reporters.

A group of chairmen of village and neighbourhood councils were also present on the occasion. They demanded the withdrawal of taxes imposed by the Federal Board of Revenue on the sale and purchase of land.

“The government first used to receive a total of 4per percent taxes, including 2 percent each of the Tehsil Municipal Administration and Provincial government, which was enhanced by the federal government to 10 per cent in the previous budget and now doubled in the current financial year,” he added.

Basharat Ali said that the sale and purchase of lands had come to a complete halt owing to the imposition of taxes by the federal government.Mera Amjad Ali village council Chairman Abdul Qayyum said that both buyers and sellers were also suffering the brunt of the preparation of the valuation table of different patwar circles as the government enhanced the price of land to almost thrice its market rates.

“If the government doesn’t lift extra taxes and valuation table set by it unjustifiably, we would come onto streets to protest against it,” Amjad Ali said.He said that the federal government also enhanced the Advance Income tax for the non-filers seller from 3 per cent to 6 per cent and for buyers from 6 per cent to 10 percent.

The president of the Federal Anjuman-i-Patwarian, Sarfaraz Abbasi, said the land mutation ratio had fallen almost 90 per cent since the imposition of federal taxes and increase in prices under the valuation tables.