\u201cGovt neither told us anything related to budget nor took us into confidence,\u201d says Khurshid Shah
\n Islamabad
\nPakistan Peoples Party (PPP) central party leader Syed Khurshid Ahmed Shah on Sunday raised reservations over his not party not being consulted on the upcoming federal budget 2024-25.
\n\u201cThe government neither told us anything related to the budget nor took us into confidence. We don\u2019t know what the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is doing about privatisation policy, taxes, developmental program,\u201d said the PPP leader.
\nShah further said that the PPP does not know anything in terms of relief. He said he\u2019s unaware whether the government is making the budget or the International Monetary Fund\u2019s (IMF) budget is being imposed.
\nThe PPP leader said that their proposals should have been included in the federal budget at any cost. \u201cPeople will ask us what have we done. Will we tell them that we don\u2019t even know about it?\u201d he questioned.
\nShah further said that the Bilawal Bhutto-led party will have to see politically what decision to take regarding the budget \u2014 which will be announced on June 12.
\nOn the other hand, Minister of State for Finance Ali Pervez Malik rebuffed the reports about the further increase in tax on the salaried class, saying that they are baseless and false.
\nSpeaking during Geo News\u2019 Naya Pakistan programme, Malik said that the government is focusing on fair tax system.
\nGandapur refuses to withdraw tobacco tax
\nA day earlier, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur refused political pressure of his party to withdraw the tobacco cess and provincial excise duty on tobacco companies.
\nGandapur told the party leaders that he will not tolerate any obstacle to increasing the provincial funds.
\nThe KP government has imposed Rs50 as provincial excise duty on tobacco to collect an amount of Rs5 billion. Similarly, the tobacco cess rate has been revised from Rs6 to Rs50 per kilograms but the provincial cabinet fixed it at Rs25 per kg.
\nThe decision will help the provincial government collect Rs7.5 billion for the province as a whole.
\n\u2018I am not someone who relies on IMF\u2019: Nawaz
\nOn the other hand, PML-N President on Saturday criticised the IMF conditions, questioning how will the policies not be difficult for the poor if they are accepted.
\n\u201cI am not someone who relies on the IMF,\u201d said the three-time prime minister.
\nHe also expressed satisfaction over the role of the federal and Punjab governments in reducing prices of essential commodities, saying that Pakistan would soon come out of crises.
\nThe PML-N president said such policies that bring down the prices of electricity and gas should be framed. \u201cMaryam Nawaz played a key role in bringing down inflation by not letting wheat price increase,\u201d he said.
\nNawaz further said that the overall inflation was dipping and the stock market was \u201cunprecedentedly\u201d skyrocketing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cGovt neither told us anything related to budget nor took us into confidence,\u201d says Khurshid Shah Islamabad Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) central party leader Syed Khurshid Ahmed Shah on Sunday raised reservations over his not party not being consulted on the upcoming federal budget 2024-25. \u201cThe government neither told us anything related to the budget […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-411847","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n