Karachi, Lahore traders at odds over July 13 anti-tax protest

By Muhammad YaseenPublished On 04 Jan 2023

Traders want to protest against the new tax policy but they can’t agree on a date. 

Traders in Lahore and Karachi wanted to stage a shutter down protest but the July 13 date has become controversial.

The prime minister recently met some traders during his visit to Karachi but wasn’t able to pacify them. All Karachi Tajir Ittehad Chairperson Atiq Mir held a press conference at which he said the premier wasn’t able to address their concerns during his visit. The Karachi traders want to, therefore, continue with their protest.

But traders in Lahore say the government has accepted their demands and now there is no need for a protest.

Traders across the country are unhappy with the government’s new tax regime. The All Karachi Tajir Ittehad called a three-day strike earlier and made 11 demands that they want the government to fulfill. These include the removal of the VAT, a reduction in taxes to 0.3%, no sales tax on up to Rs10 million sales and no income tax on people making up to Rs1.2 million a year.

They also want the government to charge a fixed income tax from shopkeepers and stop its condition of customers’ CNICs required for transactions over Rs50,000. For more latest news Pakistan, visit 9newshd.tv