Report sought on steps to check manhole deaths

LAHORE:The Lahore High Court Thursday sought a comprehensive report from Punjab chief secretary pertaining to measures taken to control incidents of children’s death by falling into open manholes. 

A lawyer, Rao Zafar Mahmood, has filed a public interest petition, arguing that the deaths of children by falling into open manholes had become a routine affair in the city and the authorities turned a deaf ear to the alarming situation.

He pointed out that in a recent such incident a minor girl while playing fell into an open manhole in Nawan Kot area and could not survive. He said the local police carried out routine investigation and closed the case. Later, he said, another horrific incident of a child’s death recurred in a private housing scheme on Canal Road.

At this point, an officer of Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) said private housing schemes did not come under the domain of the agency. Advocate Mahmood urged the court to issue a direction to the government to devise an effective policy to prevent the incidents of children’s death due to open manholes.

Justice Shahid Jamil Khan directed the chief secretary to submit a comprehensive report on the matter by October 27. The judge also sought appearance of commissioner, Lahore, and senior officers from Lahore Development Authority and Wasa on next hearing. 

tax amnesty: The Lahore High Court on Thursday reserved the verdict on petition regarding tax amnesty scheme approved by the parliament in 2016 to facilitate trader class. Justice Shahid Jamil Khan remarked that the issue should be decided once and for all whether tax amnesty should be granted.

Petitioner counsel Sheraz Zaka submitted that tax amnesty scheme for traders had been approved by the parliament through Income Tax Amendment Act 2016, which was discriminatory. He asserted that under this amnesty scheme, traders had been given exemption from audit as well as from filing wealth statement until 2018.

He argued that the traders had also been exempted from paying taxes for the past 10 years, which was discriminatory. 

He said instead of bringing structural reforms, the Federal Board of Revenue was giving cushion to these traders and; therefore, other classes like lawyers and doctors should also be facilitated.

He argued that this amnesty scheme has been granted to provide a cushion to the traders for converting their black money into white. He pleaded that criminal prosecution should be initiated against these traders who did not pay tax for the past 10 years. He requested to declare this tax amnesty scheme unconstitutional.

The counsel for federal board and deputy attorney general opposed the petition, arguing that tax amnesty scheme was brought exclusively for traders to widen the tax net and is a step towards bringing reform. The judge after hearing the arguments from both sides reserved the judgment.