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Traders end strike as govt defers CNIC condition till Jan 31

Traders end strike as govt defers CNIC condition till Jan 31
October 30, 2019
ISLAMABAD (92 News) – Traders ended their strike after the government deferred the condition of the Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) till January 31, 2020. Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Finance announced to establish a special desk in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to resolve the problems of traders. Moreover, committees of traders’ representatives will be formed to resolve the problems of the masses. Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Shabbar Zaidi said that the basic objective of the condition is to receive tax from the affluent. “The tax form will be in Urdu. However, the law pertaining to the CNIC condition still exists,” he said. Meanwhile, traders observed a shutdown across the country on Wednesday. Traders associations had called for two days of shutter down protests across Pakistan, the protest entered the second day. After failure the talks with government, the traders hinted at closing the market for an indefinite period. It is pertinent to mention here that they have been protesting against sales tax registration, a new condition requiring them to provide CNICs on transactions over Rs50,000, withholding tax on income and revised sales tax on used mobile phones. Traders met the government in Islamabad for talks which failed after the Federal Board of Revenue refused to end or defer the condition for traders to provide CNICs on transactions up to Rs50,000. Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Quetta and Peshawar as well as other cities saw their major markets shut for the second day on Wednesday. In cities like Karachi and Lahore, big markets were closed but markets in posh areas remained open. The traders have warned that if the government does not accept their demands, the protest will run on to Thursday. All shops and markets will remain closed due to the strike. Two rounds of talks were held between the traders and officials of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and the Finance Ministry, but they failed to yield any results. Both the parties are resilient on the condition of the Computerized National Identity Card. Markazi Tanzeem-e-Tajiran Pakistan President Muhammad Kashif Chaudhry said that they will announce the future strategy on Wednesday. All Pakistan Anjuman-e-Tajran secretary general Naeem Mir said that they would not let anyone do documentation.