ISLAMABAD: “Income tax returns are the most imaginative fiction being written today.”

The first “Parliamentarians Tax Directory”, issued by the Federal Board of Revenue on Saturday, attests to these remarks made by an American novelist.

Barring a few worthy exceptions, the sums paid as income tax by most of the elected representatives are laughably low. Putting it mildly, the returns do not match their princely lifestyle.

Of the 319 MNAs who filed their tax returns, 108 paid no tax at all.

The MNAs who paid less than Rs100 as income tax include Asyia Naz Tanoli (Rs88), Tahir Bashir Cheema (Rs55) and Mohammad Zain Elahi (Rs72).

According to the directory, senators paid more income tax than members of the National Assembly in 2013. Eighty-six senators filed their tax returns while three paid nothing.

Out of 89 senators, Federal minister Abbas Khan Afridi from tribal areas paid highest income tax of Rs17.991 million, while Naseema Ehsan paid lowest Rs6,750.

Among the senators who paid over Rs5 million as income tax, Talha Mehmood topped them with Rs12.940m, followed by Aitzaz Ahsan (Rs8.763m) and Dr Farogh Naseem (Rs7.868m).

The senators who paid more than Rs1m include Heman Dass (Rs2.942m), Osman Saifullah Khan (Rs2.739m), Abdul Haseeb Khan (Rs2.456m), Malik Rafique Rajwana (Rs1.207m) and Saleem Mandviwalla (Rs1.145m).

Although their names exist on the tax roll, 14 senators have not filed their returns.

Three senators also paid income support levy which was imposed on movable assets in the budget 2013-14. They are Osman Saifullah Khan (Rs379,247), Finance Minister Ishaq Dar (Rs2.701m) and Prof Sajid Mir (Rs21,219).

National Assembly

Hamza Shahbaz, son of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, paid Rs4.383m as income tax.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif paid income tax of Rs2.646m.

Shahid Khaqan Abbasi paid Rs1.205m, Obaid Ullah Shadi Khel (Rs1.256m), Chaudhry Shahbaz Babar (Rs1.075m), Sheikh Akram (Rs1.007m), Khwaja Saad Rafique (Rs1.215m) and Chaudhry Iftikhar Nazir (Rs1.213m).

As many as 23 MNAs have not filed their returns, but their names are on the tax rolls.

Tariq Christopher Qaiser paid the highest income support levy of Rs568,859, followed by Sheikh Aftab Ahmad (Rs19,475), Khawaja Asif (Rs19,607) and Syed Ali Hassan Gilani (Rs14,333).

The tax directory shows that 16 MNAs from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 11 from tribal areas, 38 from Punjab; 21 from Sindh, five from Balochistan, nine females on reserved seats from Punjab, six on reserved seats from Sindh and two from minorities did not pay any income tax.

Click here To See the Tax Details of All the Parliamentarians


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