ISLAMABAD: When country is facing serious economic crisis, Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) has caught Faisalabad Income Tax Commissioner (appeals) for delaying release of tax cases’ verdicts involving multi-billion rupees and kept furnishing misleading monthly progress reports to Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
The background interviews and documents available to The News reveal here on Sunday. “It is a serious case of misreporting. FBR has been kept in dark through misleading Monthly Progress Reports (MPR),” says a key finding of a report furnished by a three-member inspection team of the FTO. The copy of the report already circulated in FBR and other stakeholders is also available with this correspondent.
However, Tax Commissioner (appeals) Sh. Muhammad Azam, when approached by phone, rejected the report saying: “I don’t want to talk on the report furnished by the FTO neither I accept it,” said . Despite repeated requests officer refused giving his view on the FTO report.
According to the details, Federal Tax Ombudsman Mushtaq Sukhera while taking a suo motu notice on the information of misleading reports by Income Tax Commissioner, Faisalabad, constituted a three-member inspection team under section 17 (1) of the Federal Tax Ombudsman Ordinance 2000, which included Muhammad Tanvir Akhtar, head office, Islamabad, Shahidul Hassan Chattha, Commissioner Income Tax Revenue (appeals-111), Lahore and Nazir Ahmed Gajana, Adviser (Income Tax), Lahore.
The above-mentioned team after coordination with the Regional Tax Office (RTO), Faisalabad carried out an inspection of the office of Commissioner (Appeals) Faisalabad Sh Muhammad Azam on January 23, 2019.
The said commissioner was alleged that he would hear the cases but would not release the orders to the appellants even after lapse of several months. Thus the delay in decision making was adversely impacting the taxpayers as pending decisions affect the recoveries.
The examination and analysis of the record collected from the office of the Income Tax Commissioner, Faisalabad revealed, “Mr Azam had joined as Commissioner (appeals) Faisalabad in August, 2017 and as on August 1, 2017 and on December 31, 2018 the pendency were total 1497 cases (including 1297 cases of Income Tax and 200 cases of Sales Tax/Fed). “
The report says that the MPR submitted to FBR of the above-mentioned tenure reflected a different story when the position of disposal has been compared with the dispatch/release of Appellate Orders to RTO, Faisalabad.
The three-member inspection team in its 7-page report has mentioned that the said commissioner , “From September 2017 (the first month after taking charge of Appeals) to December, 2028, in the Monthly Progress Reports (MRPs) furnished to FBR reported disposal of 1,357 cases of Income Tax and 526 cases of Sales Tax/Fed,”.
The report further says, “RTO, Faisalabad’s record however verifies receipt of only 776 cases of Income Tax and 162 cases of Sales Tax/Fed. Thus in 581 cases of Income Tax and 364 cases of ST/FED,” (total cases involving revenue are 945 where appeals are admittedly pending. Thus actual pendency stands at 2,442 as against 1,102 cases inherited by Mr Azam at the time of joining”.
The inspection team while referring to record of the above-mentioned office also pointed out the dead slow disposal of appeals through at least 5 instances including:
1 During the month of September 2017 while disposal of 161 cases (income Tax/ST/FED) was reported in the MPR, dispatch register does not reflect release of even a single appellate order to RTO, Faisalabad.
2 During the month of October 2017, dispatch register shows 01 rectification on 2-10-2017 (in an earlier order), and one appellate order to CIR Corporate on 3-10-2017. On the contrary MPR reflects 244 cases (both Income Tax/ST/FED).
3 During the month of November 2017, not a single appellate order of Income Tax was released to RTO, but the MPR reflects disposal of 146 cases.
4 In the month of December 2017, disposal reported to FBR stands at 135 whereas dispatch register reflects only one batch of Income Tax. Dispatch of not a single ST/FED order is evident from register.
4 In the month of January 2018 while disposal of 103 (70 cases of Income Tax and 33 or ST/FED) cases has been reported but dispatch register reflects not a single order of ST/FED. The three-member team in its report mentioned that the said Income Tax Commissioner has no hold over staff. They pointed out, “poor IT skills have eroded his control over subordinated.” The inspection team raised a question on the integrity of the officer rather accepted that,” the officer under inspection enjoys good public perception.”
