CHITRAL: Members of Civil Society and Transport Union organized a protest rally against the Govt decision regarding crackdown for tax implementation on non -custom paid (NCP) vehicles. The rally was led by Pir Mukhtar Nabi, chairman of Tehreek Tahaffuzi Huqooqi Chitral, and former President of the Transport Union, Mohammad Saber, President driver union Ghulam Mursalin, Fazal Nasir and other leaders. The rally started from Krop Rasht Bazaar and passed from Attalaq Bazaar to Jaghur and backed on Danin road, later on gathered in square on By Pass Road Kruprasht Bazar. Civil society members also protested against the government’s brutal decision of imposing Tax on NCP vehicles. these members properly recorded their protest against the government’s decision of implementation of tax and registration fees. Addressing the rally, Pir Mukhtar Nabi, chairman of the TTH Chitral, said that Chitral is a backward district as well as a disaster area. He said that the people here are mostly poor and unemployed and they are earning their livelihood for their children on NCP vehicles, on which the government want to charge its registration fee. He said that under the agreement, Chitral is a tax -free zone for a hundred years, which was an independent state and merged in Pakistan estate of Pakistan should keep the agreement.
The Chairman of the TTH Chitral appealed to the government to register NCP vehicles in this tax -free zone without charging registration fee or any other tax and set a nominal fee annually which could pay by poor drivers and transporters of Chitral. These vehicles should be enlisted inside Chitral for registration without creating any hardships or any problem for its owners. He warned that if the government not withdrawn their decision of tax implementation people of Chitral will also held protest following of Malakand people and would also be standing side by side with them. A large number of vehicles owners and drivers participated in the rally against the implementation of crackdown registration tax against NCP vehicles. Talking to the local media on this occasion, Pir Mukhtar Nabi and former President of the Transport Union, Mohammad Saber, appealed to the government to keep in view Chitral’s backwardness and be exempted it from tax for fifty years more, and to declare it tax -free zone as per agreement. They said that after the recent floods in Chitral, mass destruction was widespread in which people faced great financial loss , but people whose homes were destroyed in the floods have not yet received enough help to reconstruct their damaged houses again. They said that it is not justice to take tax from the poor people and spend it on the luxuries of the Afsar Shahi. They demanded from the government to give relief to those poor people who are forced to commit suicide by poverty and unemployment. The protest rally and the demonstration dispersed laer on peacefully.
By: Gul Hamad Farooqi.
