• Former premier Abbasi emerged as highest taxpaying parliamentarian
• CM Buzdar, Vawda, Zartaj Gul among non-taxpayers
• 311 MNAs, 90 senators paid Rs800m

ISLAMABAD: The tax payment by Prime Minister Imran Khan surged by 172 per cent to Rs282,449 in tax year ending on June 30, 2018 from Rs103,763 a year ago, while that of former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi saw a robust increase, making him the highest taxpaying parliamentarian in the country.

According to the sixth tax directory of parliamentarians released by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr Hafeez Shaikh on Friday, Mr Abbasi paid the highest tax of Rs241.32 million in 2018 as against Rs3.08m in 2017 when he was prime minister.

The second highest taxpayer among the parliamentarians is Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MNA Muhammad Najeeb Haroon who paid Rs140.03m, followed by Law Minister and Muttahida Qaumi Movement Senator Farogh Naseem who paid Rs35.13m.

The lowest taxpayers among the parliamentarians include Sardar Yar Muha­mmad Rind (Rs400), Zulfiqar Bachani (Rs388) and Kanwal Shozab (Rs165).

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz president and Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif paid Rs9.73m in tax year 2018 as against Rs10.29m in 2017, showing a decline of 5.75pc. His son Hamza Shahbaz paid Rs8.70m in 2018 and Rs8.26m in 2017.

Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari paid Rs2.89m and his son PPP chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari paid Rs294,117 in tax year 2018. A Bilawal House spokesman, however, said that the PPP chairman had paid Rs4.56m in taxes in 2019, which includes R4.03m Agriculture Income Tax. In the year 2018, he paid Rs4.15m, including Rs3.85m Agriculture Income Tax.

Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan Alyani paid the highest tax of Rs4.80m among the chief ministers, followed by Sindh CM Syed Murad Ali Shah (Rs898,357) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa CM Mahmood Khan (Rs235,982).

Punjab Chief Minister Usman Bazdar did not pay any tax in 2018.

The tax directory clearly shows some mistake because the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) deducts tax on salaries of the parliamentarians in advance. It does not mention agriculture income tax of the parliamentarians and only compiles data on income tax.

Three senators — Shammim Afridi, Faisal Javed and Rana Maqbool Ahmad — did not pay taxes in 2018. Two PTI ministers, Muhammad Faisal Vawda and Zartaj Gul, also did not pay taxes in 2018.

Fifty MNAs who did not pay taxes in 2018 are: Muhammad Bashir Khan, Muhammad Sajjad, Malik Anwar Taj, Zahid Akram Durrani, Jawad Hussain, Mohsin Dawar, Abdul Shakoor, Aamer Mehmood Kiani, Mansoor Hayat Khan, Syed Faizul Hassan, Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali Bhindar, Malik Muhammad Ehsanullah Tiwana, Muhammad Sanaullah Khan Mastikhel, Nawab Sher, Ali Gohar Khan, Sahibzada Muhammad Mehboob Sultan, Muhammad Ameer Sultan, Malik Karamat Ali Khokhar, Saad Waseem, Ahmad Raza Maneka, Rana Iradat Sharif Khan, Rai Muhammad Murtaza Iqbal, Zahoor Hussain Qureshi, Makhdoom Zain Hussain Qureshi, Muhammad Ibrahim Khan, Noorul Hassan Tanvir, Syed Mobeen Ahmed, Muhammad Shabbir Ali, Raza Rabbani Khar, Makhdoom Zada Sayed Basit Ahmad Sultan, Niaz Ahmed Jakhar, Khawaja Sheraz Mehmood, Naveed Dero, Irfan Ali Laghari, Jamil Ahmed Khan, Agha Hassan Baloch, Syed Mehmood Shah, Mohammad Aslam Bhootani, Ms Asma Hadeed, Ms Aliya Hamza Malik, Seemi Bokhari, Ms Rubina Jamil, Ms Fauzia Behram, Ms Rukhsana Naveed, Ms Farukh Khan, Ms Naz Baloch, Ms Shamim Ara Panhwar, Ms Syma Nadeem and Ms Nusrat Wahid.

The tax directory provided some insight into the wealth of members of the National Assembly, Senate and provincial assemblies, but lifestyles and expenditures of many of them are in stark contrast to what their income tax declarations indicate. The directory prepared by the FBR shows that the sums paid as income tax by most of the elected representatives are laughably low and do not match their princely lifestyles.

Hafeez Sheikh said that 311 MNAs and 90 senators paid Rs800m, while members of the provincial assemblies paid Rs340m in taxes in 2018.

Among the federal ministers, Farogh Naseem paid the highest tax of Rs35.135m, followed by Power Minister Omar Ayub Khan (Rs26.055m), Planning and Development Minister Asad Umar (Rs5.346m), National Food Security Minister Fakhar Imam (Rs5.212m), Human Rights Minister Dr Shireen Mazari (Rs2.435m), Defence Minister Pervez Khattak (Rs1.826m), Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan (Rs1.046m), Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Haider Zaidi (Rs896,191), Economic Affairs Minister Khusro Bukhtiar (Rs624,292), Narcotics Control Minister Azam Khan Swati (Rs590,916), Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed (Rs579,011), Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan (Rs430,695), Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan Affairs Minister Ali Amin Gandapur (Rs378,763), Communications and Postal Services Minister Murad Saeed (Rs374,728), Information and Broadcasting Minister Shibli Faraz (Rs367,460), Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood (Rs231,730), Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi (Rs183,900), States and Frontier Regions Minister Shehryar Afridi (Rs183,900), IT and Telecommunication Minister Aminul Haque (Rs66,749), Interior Minister Ijaz Ahmad Shah (Rs58,120) and Industries and Production Minister Hammad Azhar (Rs22,445).

National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser paid Rs537,730, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani Rs1.363m and Senate Deputy Chairman Saleem Mandviwalla paid Rs1.591m in taxes in 2018.

Other top taxpaying parliamentarians include PPP MPA (Punjab) Mumtaz Ali Rs34.068m, Senator Talha Mahmood (JUI-F) Rs29.210m, Senator Taj Muhammad Afridi Rs28.177m, Senator Sajjad Hussain Turi Rs17.028m, PTI MNA Shaukat Ali Rs14.660m, PML-N MNA Sheikh Fayyazud Din Rs13.861m, PTI MNA Saleh Muhammad Rs12.674m, PTI MPA (Punjab) Amjad Mehmood Chaudhry Rs12.319m, Balochistan Awami Party MPA (Balochistan) Mir Akbar Askani Rs11.863m, PML-N MPA (Punjab) Chaudhry Arshad Javaid Warraich Rs11.111m, PML-N MPA (Punjab) Sheikh Alla-ud-Din Rs10.419m, PTI MPA (Punjab) Aleem Khan Rs9.193m, PML-N MPA (Balochistan) Sanaullah Zehri Rs8.320m and PML-N MPA (Punjab) Ghazali Saleem Butt Rs8.205m.

Members of provincial assemblies

As many as 43 members of the Balochistan Assembly filed their tax returns in 2018, while 13 did not file their returns. Mir Akbar Askani paid the highest tax of Rs11.863m, while Sardar Yar Muhammad Rind paid the lowest tax of Rs400.

Of the 369 members of the Punjab Assembly, 62 did not file tax returns for 2018.

MPA Mumtaz Ali is the highest taxpayer with Rs34.068m, followed by Amjad Mehmood Chaudhry (Rs12.319m), Chaudhry Arshad Javid Warraich (Rs11.11m) and Sheikh Aladdin (Rs10.419). The lowest income tax of Rs33 was paid by Chaudhry Khush Akhtar Subhani, followed by Yasir Zafar Sandhu Rs564 and Agha Ali Haider Rs840. Punjab Information Minister Fayazul Hasan Chohan did not pay any tax in 2018.

Of the 168 members of the Sindh Assembly, 21 did not file their tax returns for 2018, but their names exist on the tax roll. Nasir Hussain Shah is the highest taxpayer in the assembly with Rs7.615m, followed by Firdous Shamim Naqvi (Rs6.770m), Ms Rabia Azfar Nizami (Rs5.582m), Lal Chand Ukrani (Rs4.218m) and Ms Faryal Talpur (Rs4.563m). The lowest tax was paid by Ghulam Jellani (Rs760) and Shamim Mumtaz (Rs1283).

Of the 123 members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, 14 did not file their tax returns for 2018. Amjad Khan Afridi paid the highest tax of Rs8.053m, followed by Faisal Shakoor Khan Rs4.305m. The lowest tax paid by KP Finance Minister Taimur Saleem Khan (Rs341) and Ahmad Kundi (Rs700).

Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2020